, “r - 
MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS. 
the same as our bassoon, with which it 
could compare for depth of tone. 
Tiie next instrument of this class is the 
Vox-himana, so desif'nated from the great 
resemblance of its tones to those, of the 
human voice; This is a tenor to the haut- 
boy, and is by many called the tenoroon ; 
it was formerly muph used in country 
churches, and proved a considerable check, 
keeping the choristers in the right road, 
and by its great powers concealed a multi- 
plicity of errors among the rustic marsyases. 
Although the vox-hiimana is remarkably 
mellow and full-toned, it requires great 
practice and judgment to produce its notes 
in perfection. The compass of this instru- 
ment is very little more than two octaves ; 
it has two keys, one of which makes the 
serai-tone above G in either octave, the 
other making the low F. It is blown with 
a double reed fixed on a small round coni- 
cal staple or tube, which fits into the top of 
tlie instrument. There are six finger holes, 
though the third finger of the left hand has 
sometimes two, very small, instead of one 
of the ordinary size, for the purpose of 
making a semi-tone, by covering only one 
of them ; the same as in the Italian haut- 
boy. Tlie bottom of the vox-lmmana is in 
form of a bell, and has usually tw'o round 
holes, one on each side, for the purpose of 
lessening the vibration, and thus softening 
the tone. We consider the vox-humana, 
though exactly similar in every respect, ex- 
cepting the depth of its notes and its great- 
er bulk, to be far superior to the hautboy, 
and regret that so very pleasing an instru- 
ment should be laid aside, as it has been 
wdthin the last twenty years. On the 
other hand, we consider the whole of the 
reed species of wind instruments to be ex- 
tremely injurious to the constitution ; few 
Who practise them remain long in health, 
the bassoon and hautboy in particular. 
The tones of the latter, i. e. the Hautboy, 
or Oboe, are by no means so smooth and 
agreeable as those of the instrument just 
described ; the hautboy has obtained a place 
among theatrical and other numerous bands, 
more from the peculiarity of its intonations, 
and the studied cadences of those who give 
themselves up entirely to its practice, than 
from any real merit it possesses. Although 
we have often been highly gratified by the 
beautiful passages allotted to the hautboy, 
and which, being so very exquisitely deli- 
vered, commanded our admiration as mudi 
of the performer as of the music ; yet we 
cotdd never divest ourselves of the recol- 
lection of a bagpipe’s nasal intonation; fof; 
setting partiality and fashion aside, we 
must donfess that the soft tones of the flute 
are better suited to the expression of 
smooth familiar music ; and where more 
force, and deeper tones are required, we 
really prefer the clarinet to the hautboy. 
We have already Stated, that the forma- 
tion, fingering, &c. of the hautboy exactly 
resembles those points in the vox-humana, 
as does also in the reed, that of the former 
being smaller, proportioned to its size. Its 
scale reaches from the tenor C to D in alt ; 
including every chromatic, in tolerable per- 
fection, except the low C sharp. Some per- 
formers reach to F natural, but we cannot 
say the sounds, though perfectly in tune, 
were satisfactory ; on the contrary, tliey 
added to the nasal effect already noticed, a 
shrillness, if not a squeaking, which called 
to our remembrance the answer of Dr. 
Johnson to a friend Who had performed 
what he termed a cruelly difficult solo on 
the violin, “Yes, sir, it was a cruel solo, 
and I wish it had been an impossible one !” 
Tlie people of Asia have a kind of short 
hautboy, which has a large swell near its. 
middle ; they use a piece of double palm- 
leaf for a reed. The intonations of this in- 
strument, which are something similar to 
those of the hautboy, are peculiarly attrac- 
tive to all the serpent tribe; which often 
quit their haunts on hearing it, and play 
round the performers ; on this account it is 
invariably used by the snake-catchers. 
The Clarinet appears to us, by far, the 
most noble instrument of this species, it 
being capable of such mellowness of intona- 
tion, such varied expression, and having 
.such a compass ; it performs the whole of 
the chromatic scale from E, below the bass- 
clef-note, to F in alt ; including rather more 
than three octaves, which exceeds any other 
wind instrument with which we are ac- 
quainted. The clarinet is, with great pro'- 
priety, considered the principal in our mili- 
tary bands ; in these its powerful and rich 
notes are duly displayed ; we must, how- 
ever, remark, that this instrument is not, 
generally speaking, calculated for chamber 
performance ; for, with so few exceptions as 
to be unworthy notice, a certain sibilation 
is at times very audible, and there is much 
difficulty in rendering some transitions 
smooth, so as to avoid a certain kind of 
stoccato distinctness, not unlike an organ 
badly played:- besides, the number of its 
keys, especially if they are patent, with 
metal plugs, eccasiou a rattling that dU- 
