crumhorn (Old Eng. crump; Fr. cromorne; Ger. Krummhorn). Earliest and most common of Renaissance reed-cap instr., the name meaning ‘curved horn’. Characteristic shape is like a fishhook. Name first occurred in 1489 describing an org.-stop in Dresden, and this implied that the instr. had been in use for some time. Survived in Fr. until the middle of the 17th cent. Standard consort of crumhorns was alto (in G), 2 tens., and bass. Sop. crumhorn (stortina) was a rarity but occurs in music by Corteccia. Crumhorns had 7 finger-holes with 3 extension keys for low notes. With revival of interest in early music, crumhorns have been manufactured since the 1950s.

crum·horn • n. variant spelling of krummhorn.