contrafagotto

9.9

A very large wind instrument that makes very low, deep sounds

noun
/ˌkɒntrəˈfɑːɡətoʊ/

Specialized

: contrafagote

The orchestra featured a deep, resonant sound from the contrafagotto during the symphony's final movement.

Examples

The composer wrote a part for contrafagotto to give the piece additional depth and darkness.
A contrafagotto produces a rich, deep sound.
He specialized in rare instruments, including the contrafagotto and the English horn.
The orchestra featured a contrafagotto in the symphony.
The orchestra featured a deep, resonant sound from the contrafagotto during the symphony's final movement.
The composer wrote a part for contrafagotto to give the piece additional depth and darkness.
He specialized in rare instruments, including the contrafagotto and the English horn.

Synonyms

contrabassoon

vscontrafagotto

9.9

A large wind instrument like a bassoon that plays notes an octave lower

is the same instrument but known by a different name

double bassoon

vscontrafagotto

9.0

A large woodwind instrument like a bassoon that sounds one octave lower

is classified in the oboe family rather than the bassoon family

How Low

contrafagotto

Specialized

9.9

basset oboe

Specialized

9.4

English horn

1 6.1

oboe d'amore

Specialized

9.9

oboe

13 5.0

Surface Forms

contrafagotto singular

contrafagotti plural

Morphology

contrafagotto = contra + fagotto

The word is a direct loan from Italian (contra + fagotto); the root 'fagotto' is not a productive English word, so English learners cannot reliably derive the meaning from its parts.

Etymology

Contrafagotto comes from Italian parts contra- 'below' and fagotto 'bassoon', and the English word bassoon names the same instrument. So a contrafagotto is the 'lower' bassoon, which is why it is very large and makes the deepest sound in the woodwind family.