Tierce flute

Tierce flute (Fr.: flûte tierce; Ger.: Terzflöte; Sp.: tercerola), name given in the 18th c. to a *cross flute pitched a minor 3rd above the ordinary flute. As the latter was then considered to be in D, the tierce flute was said to be in F; today we consider the ordinary flute to be a C flute and the tierce flute to be consequently in E♭, although in military bands it is still referred to as an F flute. Its compass is 2½ octs.; 54–55 cm. (21½ in.) long (14, 89). Sort…