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Contrabassoon
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=== Baroque era β present === [[File:Contrabassoon in C 1825β33.png|thumb|Contrabassoon made in Vienna in the first half of the 19th century]] The contrabassoon was developed, especially in [[England]], in the mid-18th century; the oldest surviving instrument, which came in four parts and has only three keys, was built in 1714.<ref name="auto">Raimondo Inconis ''Inconis, Il contrafagotto, Storia e Tecnica'' - ed. Ricordi (1984-2004) ER 3008 / [[ISMN]] 979-0-041-83008-7</ref> It was around that time that the contrabassoon began gaining acceptance in church music. Some notable early uses of the contrabassoon during this period include in J.S. Bach's ''St. John's Passion'' (1749 and 1739-1749 versions), and G.F. Handel's ''L'Allegro'' (1740) and ''Music for the Royal Fireworks'' (1749).<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":0" /> Until the late 19th century, the instrument typically had a weak tone and poor intonation. For this reason, the contrabass woodwind parts often were scored for, and contrabassoon parts were often played on a [[Serpent (musical instrument)|serpent]], [[contrabass sarrusophone]] or, less frequently, [[reed contrabass]], until improvements by [[Johann Adam Heckel|Heckel]] in the late 19th century secured the contrabassoon's place as the standard [[double reed]] contrabass. For more than a century, between 1880 and 2000, Heckelβs design remained relatively unchanged. Chip Owen, at the American company Fox, began manufacturing an instrument in 1971 with some improvements. Generally, during the 20th century changes to the instrument were limited to an upper vent key near the bocal socket, a tuning slide, and a few key linkages to facilitate technical passages. In 2000, Heckel announced a completely new keywork for its instrument and Fox introduced its own new key system based on input from [[New York Philharmonic]] contrabassoonist Arlan Fast. Both companies' improvements allow for improved technical facility as well as greater range in the high register. [[Benedikt Eppelsheim]] developed the [[Contraforte]], a "redesigned contrabassoon", in collaboration with [[Guntram Wolf]] in the early 2000s.
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