The piccolo is a small flute. It is half the length of a regular flute, and it plays an octave higher. It is the highest instrument in the orchestra and the band. Its sound carries over a full orchestra, so one piccolo is enough.
Quick facts
- Family: woodwinds
- Length: about a foot
- Made of: wood, metal, or plastic
- Sound is made by: blowing across a hole, as on a flute
- The name: short for the Italian “flauto piccolo,” which means “small flute”
- In an orchestra: one, played by one of the flute players
How it works
A piccolo works the way a flute does. The player holds it out to the side and blows across a hole near one end. The air splits on the far edge of the hole, and the air inside the tube starts to vibrate.
The player presses keys to open and close holes along the tube. The fingerings are the same as on the flute, so a flute player can pick up a piccolo and find the notes at once.
The tube is half as long as a flute’s. A shorter tube gives a higher note, and each note comes out one octave above the same fingering on the flute.
Read the flute for kids.
Flute and piccolo side by side
| Flute | Piccolo | |
|---|---|---|
| Length | About 26 inches | About 13 inches |
| Sound | Clear and silvery | Bright and piercing |
| Lowest note | Middle C | The D more than an octave above middle C |
| Most often made of | Metal | Wood in orchestras, and metal or plastic in marching bands |
| In an orchestra | Two or three | One |
Why it is hard to play
- The hole is tiny. The lips need to aim a thin stream of air at a small target.
- High notes show every flaw. A note that is a little out of tune is easy to hear.
- Soft is harder than loud. The top notes want to shout.
- It is loud at close range. Some players wear an earplug in the ear nearest the instrument.
Its job in the orchestra and the band
Sparkle. The piccolo doubles the flutes or the violins an octave higher and adds a bright edge to the sound.
Storms and battles. Composers use it for lightning, wind, and whistles.
Marches. In a marching band, the piccolo carries over the brass and the drums. Read the marching band for kids.
Jokes and birds. It chirps, squeaks, and giggles.
Pieces to hear
“The Stars and Stripes Forever,” by Sousa. Near the end, the piccolo plays a high, twirling tune over the band. In many bands, the piccolo players stand up for it. See what to hear.
Symphony No. 5, last movement, by Beethoven. The piccolo joins the orchestra for the finale and can be heard running up to the top in the last pages. See the Symphony No. 5 guide.
“Thunderstorm,” from the Pastoral Symphony, by Beethoven. The piccolo is the lightning. See the Pastoral Symphony guide.
“Chinese Dance,” from The Nutcracker, by Tchaikovsky. Flutes and a piccolo play quick, high notes over low bassoons.
“Empress of the Pagodas,” from Mother Goose, by Ravel. The piccolo opens with a quick tune on five notes. See the Mother Goose guide.
Piccolo Concerto in C major, by Vivaldi. Vivaldi wrote it for a tiny recorder, and piccolo players have made it their own.
Starting to play
A child does not start on the piccolo. A child starts on the flute.
- Flute first. Players learn the fingerings and a steady tone on the flute for a few years.
- Piccolo later. A band director often hands a piccolo to a strong flute player in middle school or high school.
- One of each. Most piccolo players keep playing the flute, and switch between the two in the same concert.
Read how to choose a band instrument.
Things to do together
Flute or piccolo? Play a flute solo and a piccolo solo. Ask which is higher.
Find the lightning. Play Beethoven’s storm. Raise a hand each time the piccolo shrieks.
High and low. Play the piccolo solo from “The Stars and Stripes Forever.” Then play a tuba solo. Stand on tiptoe for the high one, and crouch for the low one.
Short tube, high note. Blow across the top of a short bottle and a tall bottle. The short one sings higher.
Half the size. Cut a paper strip 26 inches long and one 13 inches long. Those are the lengths of a flute and a piccolo.
Print and play
Tick the piccolo on the instrument families listening chart. Read woodwind instruments for kids and the loudest, biggest, highest, and lowest instruments.
More from this guide
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Cello vs double bass for kids and parents: size, strings, sound, how each is played, their jobs in the orchestra, and two pieces that show the difference.
Use it with your kids
Print a listening page, a practice chart, or a composer fact sheet. Or try a tool, such as the composer timeline or the piece picker.