Contrabass flute

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Contrabass flutes in G and C

The contrabass flute (sometimes also called octobass flute) is one of the rarer members of the flute family. It is used mostly in flute ensembles. Its range is similar to that of the regular concert flute, except that it is pitched two octaves lower; the lowest performable note is two octaves below middle C (the lowest C on the cello). Contrabass flutes are only available from select flute makers.

Sometimes referred to as the "gentle giant" of the flute family, the contrabass retains the facility for trills and flautando, as found elsewhere in the flute world. Ease of arpeggiation is moderate and thus equivalent to the rest of the flute family. The upper registers (middle C and above) lack the strength of tone found in its cousins; the strongest register is arguably that between G1 and G2.

The contrabass flute requires much greater force of breath to produce sound than most other wind instruments, and composers who write for this instrument might consider more frequent breaks in phrasing than one would when writing for smaller flutes.

Contemporary musicians using the contrabass flute include Madeleine Bischof, Pierre-Yves Artaud, Matthias Ziegler and Stefan Keller.

The contrabass flute in C produced by Kotato & Fukushima sells for US$20,000[link], and that made by Eva Kingma sells for US$16,000.

Instrument maker Eva Kingma produces a "contrabass flute in G," pitched a fourth below the bass flute and an octave lower than the alto flute; it is, thus, technically, a contra-alto flute.

Contrabass flute

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