Steve Bacon on tenor, Harlan Bittner on alto,
Rebecca Bittner on soprano and Pat O’Scannell on bass.
Bookings may be made though MUSICA MATRIX:
(541) 482-9757 /
Renaissance Crumhorn Ensemble
Musica Matrix welcomes its newest ensemble to the fold. The Buzzz, Crumhorn Cooperative is a group of four musicians playing one of the Renaissance capped reed instruments, the krummhorn.
The name means ‘bend’ in German. With its shape looking uncannily like an umbrella handle, a cane or a snorkel— take your pick—it certainly strikes an unusual profile.
The closest relative being the bagpipes, this capped reed fingers like a recorder, therefor making it a favorite among amateur players worldwide. German builders began cranking out these instruments in the 1950’s and 60’s, fitting them out with plastic reeds and thus making them a far easier blow. An Italian design was unearthed in the 90’s, with a flared bell to increase dynamic range, and fitted withreal cane reeds, makes them appealing to the professional players as well.
Related capped reeds would be the Rauschpfeif and Schreierpfeif, both more like the shawm in dynamic level, but again more accessible to players of the recorder as opposed to requiring a background in playing exposed reeds such as the shawm and dulcian.
The Buzzz, Crumhorn Collective
Steve Bacon on tenor, Harlan Bittner on alto
Rebecca Bittner on soprano and Pat O’Scannell on bass.
