birbynė
A birbynė is a Lithuanian aerophone that can be either single or double-reeded and may or may not have a mouthpiece. Birbynė can be made of a variety of materials: wood, bark, horn, straw, goose feather, etc. The earliest and simplest examples were used by children as playtoys and by shepherds as a tool to control the herd.
Also recorded as birbyne · klernata · parputas · ragelis
birbynė

HaCeMei · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Name
- Birbynė
- Field
- reed aerophone.
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Documentary summary
A birbynė is a Lithuanian aerophone that can be either single or double-reeded and may or may not have a mouthpiece. Birbynė can be made of a variety of materials: wood, bark, horn, straw, goose feather, etc. The earliest and simplest examples were used by children as playtoys and by shepherds as a tool to control the herd.
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wikidata · Q864989
In this article
Overview
Overview
In the 19th century, influenced by classical instruments and especially the clarinet, the birbynė evolved into a serious musical instrument used in ensembles. Modern birbynės are made of wood with bells of horn and usually have ten tone holes and an octave key to access the upper registers. They are divided by pitch range into three categories: soprano, tenor, and contrabass. The soprano birbynė is a non-transposing instrument with a range from A3 to G6 (almost three octaves). The tenor birbynė has a range of B2 to G5, and the contrabass instrument has a range of F1 to G3.
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Birbynė • Names — Birbynė, klernata, parputas, ragelis • Classification — Single reed • Related — Sorna, Rhaita, Suona, Sopila, Shawm, Zurna
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.The Lithuanian birbyne.
- 2.Instruments - Ensemble LietuvaEN.
- 3.Egidijus Virbašius: folkinstruments.lt,
- 4.Erich Tremmel: Saxophon. IV. Verwandte Instrumente. 5. Birbyne. In: MGG Online, November 2016
- 5.Philipp Ruhig: Littauisch-Deutsches und Deutsch-Littauisches Lexikon. Königsberg 1747
- 6.LITHUANIAN INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC> WIND INSTRUMENTS (Aerophones).
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The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
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