Klarinet Archive - Posting 001087.txt from 1998/10
From: Alan.Woodcock@-----.net Subj: Re : [kl] Basset questions Date: Mon, 26 Oct 1998 05:29:22 -0500
My French dictionary (le Petit Robert, generally considered authoritative)
gives two derivations for "basset".
1. 16th century : the hound. Derived from "bas" (low). That's a pure
french derivation from a 12th century adjective.
2. 1866, from Italian "bassetto" : music : "cor de basset, clarinette
basse" [sic]
While French was (is) the language of educated persons, Italian was (is?)
the lingua franca of musicians.
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