Five-key flute Five-key flute The five-key flute is a musical instrument once common in school marching bands, and composed of wood with metal keys. It is a transposing instrument, most commonly in Bb, this variant being known as the Bb flute and sounding one tone below the orchestral piccolo. The next most common variant is the Eb flute, sounding a fifth below the Bb flute and used as its bass instrument in band harmonies. It is now often found in British military corps of drums, often playing various regimental marches. As the name suggests, the five-key flute most commonly has five keys,
Xiao (flute) Xiao (flute) The xiao (, pronounced ) is a Chinese vertical end-blown flute. It is generally made of bamboo. It is also sometimes called dòngxiāo (), "dòng" meaning "hole." An ancient name for the xiāo is "shùzhúdí" (, lit. "vertical bamboo flute", ) but the name "xiāo" in ancient times also included the side-blown bamboo flute, "dizi". The "xiāo" is a very ancient Chinese instrument usually thought to have developed from a simple end-blown flute used by the Qiang people of Southwest China in ancient period. "Xiao" are mostly made of bamboo, the best being 'purple bamboo' or . Sometimes,