Editing Shawm (section)

==Use==
[[File:Woman playing bass Shawn, Tobias Stimmer.jpg|thumb|Woman playing a bass shawm ([[Tobias Stimmer]] {{circa|1500}})]]

By the early 16th century the brash tonality of the medieval shawm had been modulated by a narrowing of the bore and a reduction in the size of the fingerholes. This also extended the range, enabling the performer to play the notes in the second [[octave]]. Larger sizes of shawm were built, down to the great bass in B{{music|flat}}, two octaves and a major third below the soprano in D. However, the larger sizes were unwieldy, which made them somewhat rare.

The smaller sizes of shawm, chiefly the soprano, alto and sometimes the tenor, were more often coupled with the [[Renaissance]] trombone, or [[sackbut]], and the majestic sound of this ensemble was much in demand by civic authorities. The shawm became standard equipment for [[alta capella|town bands]], or [[wait (musician)|waits]], who were required to herald the start of municipal functions and signal the major times of day. The shawm became so closely associated with the town waits ({{lang|de|die Stadtpfeifer}} in German and {{lang|it|I pifferi}} in Italian) that it was also known as the wait-pipe.

[[File:Musicians from 'Procession in honour of Our Lady of Sablon in Brussels'.jpg|thumb|250px|left|1615, Brussels. Procession of musicians, three with shawms.]]

Before the discovery of a still shawm aboard the shipwreck of the ''[[Mary Rose]]'', instrument historians had been puzzled by references to "still shawms", or "soft" shawms, that were said to have a sound that was less shrill than earlier shawms.<ref>Jermy Montagu "Music on Board the ''Mary Rose''", in Gardiner (2005), pp. 226–30</ref> The still shawm disappeared from the musical scene in the 16th century; the instrument found on the ''Mary Rose'' is the only surviving example. A reproduction has been made and played. Combined with a pipe and [[Tabor (instrument)|tabor]], it provides a "very effective bass part" that would have produced "rich and full sound, which would have provided excellent music for dancing on board ship".<ref>Charles Foster "Wind Instruments", in Gardiner (2005), pp. 240–241.</ref>

The shawm was reserved almost exclusively for outdoor performance—for softer, indoor music, other instruments such as the [[crumhorn]] and [[cornamuse]] were preferred. These were double reed instruments fitted with a capsule that completely enclosed the reed, which softened the sound but still did not allow for any variation in dynamics.

Known by the Spanish term ''[[chirimia]]'', the shawm remains an important ritual instrument among [[Maya people]]s of Highland [[Guatemala]]. Accompanied by a drum, the chirimia is frequently used in processions and in certain ritual dances, such as the Dance of the Conquest (Baile de la Conquista), and this is still played today.