I was just thinking to myself, why is a double bass called a double bass? Is there part of it which is double? Is it double the size of a cello?

I thought it was because it was a full octave below the cello?

The original double bass effectively used to 'double the bass' line .
iona

is that right Iona? because they doubled the bass line? ok thats the answer i shall give to my inquistive pupils!

Good question - I've often wondered about that myself!

Presumably the Contra Bassoon is sometimes called a Double Bassoon for the same reason

But why is a Cor Anglais (English Horn) called that when its not a horn. (Sorry this is not a string question!)

Hornpipes were played, often by sailors, to accompany the dance that they performed when at sea as a means of keeping fit. A hornpipe was a short tube like instrument originally with a horn at the end to form the bell, a wooden or long bone body and a reed at the top. Nothing at all to do with hunting horns or post horns, just a name that stuck!

I think the "anglais" bit is from "angle", ie an "angled" horn, which then was misspelled as anglais. I don't know where I read that though so may be wrong!

Yes, Iona is right. the Double bass is called that because it 'doubled the bass line' of the continuo part in baroque music.

Sarah, you a correct too. Cor anglais actually means 'angled horn', the spelling got mixed up and people think it's an English horn. A cor anglais reed fits into an angled bocal (a small piece of metal tubing) which in turn fits into the top of the instrument. Maybe this is where the word 'angled' comes into it?

Yay, glad I wasn't talking nonsense


Sounds about right to me! (am a non-oboe-non-cor-playing non expert, though!)

Well, there are 2 reasons.

Firstly, the bass is about twice the size of a cello.

Secondly, it plays a full octave below the cello for the same note.

Incorrect as far as why it is called the double bass. If you had read the entire thread you would have discovered the correct answer has already been stated. However, I shall reiterate the answer here.

The double bass gets its name from baroque times, when it "doubled the bass" part of the harpsichord continuo.