Surma-horn

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Surma
HS#:421.112
Surma
Classification
Playing range

c3-g5

Related instruments
Top instrument is a Surma. Below is a Ukrainian cossack trumpet
Top instrument is a Surma. Below is a Ukrainian cossack trumpet

The Surma (Ukrainian: Сурма) (Shawm) The surma is a type of shawm that had widespread use in the armies of the Cossack host. It is thought that the instrument was introduced into Ukraine from the Caucasus or Turkey where the surma exists under the names zurna and surnai. The term is often used to describe the wooden trumpet. The instrument surma is made of wood with a conical bore, having a bell at one end and a double reed similar to that used in the oboe at the other. It usually has nine to ten finger-holes and is capable of chromatic sounds through a range of dynamics. The instrument is reminiscent of the sound of the oboe. Presently the surma has found its way into orchestras of Ukrainian folk instruments in a range of sizes such as prima, alto and bass.

[edit] Sources

  • Humeniuk, A. - Ukrainski narodni muzychni instrumenty - Kyiv: Naukova dumka, 1967
  • Mizynec, V. - Ukrainian Folk Instruments - Melbourne: Bayda books, 1984
  • Cherkasky, L. - Ukrainski narodni muzychni instrumenty // Tekhnika, Kyiv, Ukraine, 2003 - 262 pages. ISBN 966-575-111-5