Cowbells

As Printed on a Score

Labels the cowbell line (Cowbells, or Cowbell for one), written on a single line, or at specific pitches if tuned bells are wanted. The context decides the instrument: an orchestral part may mean Alpine herd bells shaken offstage, a Latin or jazz part a single clapperless bell struck with a stick.

Also spelled: Cowbell

How Composers Use It

Mahler’s herd bells in the Sixth Symphony and Strauss’s in An Alpine Symphony made them a symbol of height and solitude; in Latin music the struck cowbell is a timekeeper. Say which you mean, whether they are shaken freely or struck in rhythm, and whether they sound offstage — a cloud of many bells is quite different from one bell keeping time.

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