It possessed a rich tone and wide dynamic range.

Originally it accompanied plainchant (Gregorian chant) in churches from the 18th century, until superseded by brass basses in the 19th century, it was a standard wind bass in military bands. It is made of wood in a serpentine curve 7 to 8 feet (2 to 2.5 m) long, and it has a conical bore and six finger holes. It was probably invented in 1590 by Edme Guillaume, a French canon of Auxerre, as an improvement on bass versions of the closely related cornett. Serpent, in music, a bass wind instrument sounded by the vibration of the lips against a cup mouthpiece.

SpaceNext50 Britannica presents SpaceNext50, From the race to the Moon to space stewardship, we explore a wide range of subjects that feed our curiosity about space!.

Learn about the major environmental problems facing our planet and what can be done about them!

Saving Earth Britannica Presents Earth’s To-Do List for the 21st Century.

100 Women Britannica celebrates the centennial of the Nineteenth Amendment, highlighting suffragists and history-making politicians.

COVID-19 Portal While this global health crisis continues to evolve, it can be useful to look to past pandemics to better understand how to respond today.

Student Portal Britannica is the ultimate student resource for key school subjects like history, government, literature, and more.

This Time in History In these videos, find out what happened this month (or any month!) in history.

#WTFact Videos In #WTFact Britannica shares some of the most bizarre facts we can find.

Demystified Videos In Demystified, Britannica has all the answers to your burning questions.

Britannica Classics Check out these retro videos from Encyclopedia Britannica’s archives.

Britannica Explains In these videos, Britannica explains a variety of topics and answers frequently asked questions.

Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin