“Flageolets”—Towards a Definition

Defining what a “flageolet” is has always been a tricky proposition. The term “flageolet” has never been used to describe one particular instrument (unlike, for instance, the recorder) nor did flageolets evolve in a straight-forward, linear way (in comparison to other woodwind instruments, such as the flute or clarinet). The term has also been misused far than most, as many authors have used it to referred to fipple flutes in general (woodwind instruments, such as penny whistles, recorders and flageolets, whose sound is produced by a beak directing the airflow over a wedge) it should refer to one of a specific family of woodwind instruments.

However, for the purposes of this website, the term “flageolet” can be taken to mean one of the following:

1. A fipple flute which has the traditional fingering pattern of a French flageolet (i.e. 4 holes on the front and 2 holes on the back, to produce the scale A B D G A, or its equivalent in another key, when the holes are opened one at a time).
2. A fipple flute which has the traditional barrel, conical wind-way and beak of many flageolets.
3. A double or triple instrument, made by combining two flageolets.

This means that instruments, such as early French flageolets, which have a recorder-style body, are included whilst the modern wooden-whistles, which combine an English flageolet pattern of fingering with a recorder-style body are not. Double Flute-flageolets, Triple-flageolets and the Delecta Harmonica are all included as attempts to combine two flageolets, whilst the Flute d'accord and the various folk Double Fipple-flutes are not.

A lack of clear phraseology has blighted most writing which concerns flageolets. Therefore, it is advised (as is hopefully demonstrated by this website) that the term “the flageolet” be replaced by the plural “flageolets”, as it is more accurate to refer to the flageolet family of instruments rather than the flageolet itself. It is also helpful, whenever referring to a specific instrument, to use its full title (e.g. “the English flagoelet”, rather than “the flageolet”) to again avoid confusion.