Seeking the sounds of ancient horns

Abstract

Recent archaeological discoveries, most notably at the Gallo-Roman site at Tintignac in the Corrèze district of France, have thrown fresh light on the nature of some of the lip-excited wind instruments used in Europe around two thousand years ago. In particular, it has been possible to reconstruct working copies of the Celtic horn known as the carnyx, and to experiment on the reproductions both scientifically and musically. A number of Etruscan and classical Roman brasswind instruments, including the lituus and the cornu, have also been reproduced and tested under the auspices of the European Music Archaeology Project. This paper reviews some of this work, and discusses the usefulness of acoustical modeling and measurement in interpreting the possible musical functioning of these ancient horns.