The sarrusophones are a family of metal double reed conical bore woodwind instruments patented and first manufactured by French instrument maker Pierre-Louis Gautrot in 1856. Gautrot named the sarrusophone after French bandmaster Pierre-Auguste Sarrus (1813–1876), whom he credited with the concept of the instrument, though it is not clear whether Sarrus benefited financially. The instruments were intended for military bands, to serve as replacements for oboes and bassoons which at the time lacked the carrying power required for outdoor marching music. Although originally designed as double-reed instruments, single-reed mouthpieces were later developed for use with the larger bass and contrabass sarrusophones.
Sarrusophones, left to right: bass, baritone, tenor, alto, soprano. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Sarrusophones, left to right: bass, baritone, tenor, alto, soprano. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
Sarrusophones, Museu de la Música de Barcelona
Conn contrabass sarrusophone, c. 1920–1925. Conn started making E♭ contrabass sarrusophones in 1921; about 300 were made in total, about half for the US Army Quartermaster Corps.)
A double reed is a type of reed used to produce sound in various wind instruments. In contrast with a single reed instrument, where the instrument is played by channeling air against one piece of cane which vibrates against the mouthpiece and creates a sound, a double reed features two pieces of cane vibrating against each other. This means, for instruments with the double reed fully exposed, that the air flow can be controlled by the embouchure from the top, bottom and sides of the reed. The term double reeds can also refer collectively to the class of instruments which use double reeds.
Bassoon reeds, showing the oval opening (bottom left), which is actually a vesica piscis
Bagpipe of Portugal reed (gaita transmontana)
Bassoon reed
Bombard reed