George Catlin (musical instrument maker) first successful manufacturers of bass clarinets in the world. An alto clarinet, unsigned but of similar design to Catlin's bass clarinets and very probably by him or one of his students, has survived; made circa 1820, it is one of the first known examples of the instrument. George Catlin (musical instrument maker) George Catlin (1778-1852) was a prominent American maker of musical instruments. He worked in Hartford, Connecticut from 1799 or earlier until about 1814, when he moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. According to his advertisements in Connecticut newspapers he made pianofortes, harpsichords, violoncellos, guitars, bassoons, clarinets, "hautboys" (oboes), flutes, and
Musical instrument among civilizations caused rapid spread and adaptation of most instruments in places far from their origin. By the Middle Ages, instruments from Mesopotamia were in maritime Southeast Asia, and Europeans played instruments from North Africa. Development in the Americas occurred at a slower pace, but cultures of North, Central, and South America shared musical instruments. By 1400, musical instrument development slowed in many areas and was dominated by the Occident. Musical instrument classification is a discipline in its own right, and many systems of classification have been used over the years. Instruments can be classified by their effective range, their