History
You will find references to the frequency of the note A interspersed in
the following timeline. These are included because understanding how
the reference frequency has changed over time allows a greater
understanding of modifications to the flute scale.
| Year |
Milestone |
Contributor |
| 1340 |
Early one-piece wooden flutes appear in drawings. |
webmaster |
| 1500 |
Medieval and Renaissance flute have cylindrical bore design. |
webmaster |
| 1650 |
A=392-415 Hz (Baroque instruments) |
webmaster |
| 1670 |
Baroque three-piece 1-key conical bore flute becomes popular. |
webmaster |
| 1722 |
Tuning cork added. |
webmaster |
| 1751 |
A=422.5 Hz (Handel's tuning fork). |
webmaster |
| 1760 |
Multiple keys added. |
webmaster |
| 1780 |
A=421.6 Hz (Mozart). |
webmaster |
| 1780 |
Classical 4 to 8-key flutes become popular. |
webmaster |
| 1810 |
Böhm experiments with early modern flute models. |
webmaster |
| 1820 |
A=433 Hz (London Philharmonic). |
webmaster |
| 1821 |
Rudall & Rose start making 8-keyed flutes. |
webmaster |
| 1822 |
Nicholson flutes with larger finger holes for greater projection. |
webmaster |
| 1831 |
Böhm system flute appears with keys, springs, and pads. |
webmaster |
| 1834 |
A=440.2 Hz (Congress of Physicists, Stuttgart). |
webmaster |
| 1850 |
Böhm flute becomes popular. |
webmaster |
| 1852 |
A=452.5 Hz (London Philharmonic). |
webmaster |
| 1879 |
A=454.7 Hz (Steinway & Sons Tuning Fork). |
webmaster |
| 1937 |
A=440 Hz (International Conference, Standard Pitch). |
webmaster |
| 1987 |
A=440 Hz (Confirmed as International Standard). |
webmaster |
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