Apito, which is the Portuguese word for "

whistle A whistle is an instrument which produces sound from a stream of gas, most commonly air. It may be mouth-operated, or powered by air pressure, steam, or other means. Whistles vary in size from a small slide whistle or nose flute type to a lar ...

", refers to any of a variety of whistles.

Purpose

The apito de samba ("samba whistle") is used during performances of samba. In a

samba school A samba school ( pt, Escola de samba) is a dancing, marching, and drumming (Samba Enredo) club. They practice and often perform in a huge square- compounds ("quadras de samba") and are devoted to practicing and exhibiting samba, an Afro-Brazilian ...

, the apito de samba plays a crucial role because during these performances, the mestre de bateria – the "band leader" – uses the whistle to signal transitions to the band. These transitions could include changes in timbre or rhythmic pattern. The origins of the apito are undoubtedly a fairly simple instrument, but has developed as a standard today into a whistle capable of giving three notes. The LP Tri-Tone Samba Whistle shown here has its origins in Brazilian music but has become a standard in today's dance music as well. It has three distinct, complementary tones that are achieved by placing fingers over the side chamber holes in various combinations. The rhythms played on apitos de samba are endless and often change throughout a

batucada Batucada is a substyle of samba and refers to a percussive style, usually performed by an ensemble, known as a bateria. Batucada is characterized by its repetitive style and fast pace. As is Samba, the Batucada is a Brazilian musical expression wit ...

performance. Outside Brazil, especially in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

, the samba whistle is also used as a rhythm instrument. This part is not necessarily done by the band leader. The samba whistle is easy to learn, so it is also a suitable toy musical instrument for children. In samba music, the samba whistle is a perfect supplement for the

maracas A maraca (), sometimes called shaker or chac-chac, is a rattle which appears in many genres of Caribbean and Latin music. It is shaken by a handle and usually played as part of a pair. Maracas (from Guaraní ), also known as tamaracas, were ...

. This requires very loud maracas so the whistle does not drown them out.

Types of apitos

Samba band leaders can choose to either play a single-tone apito – common referee whistle – or a tri-tone apito. Apitos were traditionally made of wood, but now most are made of metal. The whistle is a chamber that has a small ball or dowel rod inside. When one blows air through the mouthpiece, the small ball or dowel rod moves around the chamber and hits its sides.

Sound characteristics

Since, the apito de samba has a small ball or dowel rod that hits the sides of the whistle's chamber, this instrument creates a loud and shrill sound, which is useful in a samba school because the sound can be heard over the playing of the band. However one can manipulate the sound of the whistle by changing the speed at which one is blowing air through the instrument and by changing one's

embouchure Embouchure () or lipping is the use of the lips, facial muscles, tongue, and teeth in playing a wind instrument. This includes shaping the lips to the mouthpiece of a woodwind instrument or the mouthpiece of a brass instrument. The word is o ...

. Audio example of variations in apito de samba can be found online. Sound of a wood samba whistle can be also heard online (1:46 – 2:08).

Single-tone vs tri-tone apitos

Band leaders using single-tone apitos can choose to hold the instrument between their teeth and create signals with both the whistle and their hands to conduct. Band leaders with tri-tone apitos hold the instrument with one hand and can use the other hand to conduct. Tri-tone apitos have three holes – one on the top, one on the left, and one on the right. One can manipulate the pitch being played by covering either or both of the holes on the sides of the instrument using a thumb and/or index finger. Covering none of the holes creates the highest pitch, while covering either of the two side holes creates the middle pitch, and covering both side holes creates the apito’s lowest pitch

References

{{Authority control Fipple flutes Whistles Brazilian musical instruments Blown percussion instruments South American percussion instruments