The garklein recorder in C, also known as the sopranissimo recorder or piccolo recorder, is the smallest size of the

recorder Recorder or The Recorder may refer to: Newspapers * ''Indianapolis Recorder'', a weekly newspaper * ''The Recorder'' (Massachusetts newspaper), a daily newspaper published in Greenfield, Massachusetts, US * ''The Recorder'' (Port Pirie), a news ...

family. Its range is C₆–A₇ (C₈). The name ''garklein'' is

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

for "quite small", and is also sometimes used to describe the sopranino in G. Although some modern German makers use the single-word form ''Garkleinflötlein'', this is without historical precedent. Double holes for the two lowest notes (used on the larger recorders to achieve a fully chromatic scale) are uncommon. The instrument is usually notated in the treble clef two

octave In music, an octave ( la, octavus: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is the interval between one musical pitch and another with double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been refer ...

s lower than its actual sound. The garklein recorder is only about 16 to 18 cm long and is different from larger recorders in that it is usually made in one piece due to its size. This very small recorder was unknown before the

Baroque era The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including th ...

, but a one-handed

zuffolo Zuffolo (also chiufolo, ciufolo) is an Italian fipple flute. First described in the 14th century, it has a rear thumb-hole, two front finger-holes, and a conical bore. It is approximately 8 cm in length and has a range of over two octaves, fr ...

with three front finger holes and one thumb hole is described by

Michael Praetorius Michael Praetorius (probably 28 September 1571 – 15 February 1621) was a German composer, organist, and music theorist. He was one of the most versatile composers of his age, being particularly significant in the development of musical forms ba ...

in his ''

Syntagma Musicum ''Syntagma Musicum (1614-1620)'' is a musical treatise in three volumes by the German composer, organist, and music theorist Michael Praetorius. It was published in Wittenberg and Wolfenbüttel. It is one of the most commonly used research sources ...

'', where it is called "gar kleine Plockfloetlein" (a very small little recorder). Praetorius says it is about three to four Brunswick inches long. Praetorius's descriptive expression is the source of the name given by modern makers to their recorders in C₆. Correctly describing Praetorius's "gar klein Flötlein" as "der höchsten Schnabelflötenart mit nur vier Grifflöchern" (the highest type of fipple flute, with only four finger holes),

Curt Sachs Curt Sachs (; 29 June 1881 – 5 February 1959) was a German musicologist. He was one of the founders of modern organology (the study of musical instruments). Among his contributions was the Hornbostel–Sachs system, which he created with Erich ...

equated this instrument with the ''flauto alla vigesima seconda'' specified by

Claudio Monteverdi Claudio Giovanni Antonio Monteverdi (baptized 15 May 1567 – 29 November 1643) was an Italian composer, choirmaster and string player. A composer of both secular and sacred music, and a pioneer in the development of opera, he is considered ...

in the 1607 score of his opera ''

L'Orfeo ''L'Orfeo'' ( SV 318) (), sometimes called ''La favola d'Orfeo'' , is a late Renaissance/early Baroque ''favola in musica'', or opera, by Claudio Monteverdi, with a libretto by Alessandro Striggio. It is based on the Greek legend of Orpheus, and ...

''. Because Praetorius gives the sounding pitch of the instrument's lowest note as C₆ in Plate IX of the supplement to ''Syntagma Musicum'' 2, Sachs associated the name with "gar klein" as used by organ builders to refer to the so-called " one-foot" or "third-octave" register. Today, Monteverdi's instrument is generally assumed to be the sopranino in G₅, the smallest true recorder described by Praetorius, which he calls ''exilent'' (topmost) in Latin and ''klein flöttlein'' (small little flute) in German. Adding to the confusion, however, he also uses the expression "klein flöttlein" for the one-handed zuffolo.) The earliest-known example of a true recorder in C₆ is an ivory instrument by a Nuremberg maker identified by the mark "M", dating from about 1670. In comparison to larger recorders, the fingering is relatively difficult because of the very tight hole spacing. Frans von Twaalfhoven produced an even smaller ''piccolino'' recorder in F. The experimental piccolino plays a fourth higher than the garklein. Designed as jewellery (brooch and necklet pendant), there is an even smaller recorder, available from the Mollenhauer company in castello boxwood, rosewood, tulipwood, or grenadilla, that is actually playable.

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