Kleine Flöte

As Printed on a Score

Kleine Flöte (abbreviated Kl. Fl.) is the older German name for the piccolo, beside Piccoloflöte, Mahler’s Piccolo-Flöte and plain Piccolo; the ordinary flute is then Große Flöte. It may label a staff or appear in a flute part as a change: “Kleine Flöte vorbereiten” (get the piccolo ready). Kl. alone can also stand for Klarinette, or for klein in Kl. Tr. (snare drum).

Abbreviations: Kl. Fl., Kl. Flöte, Kl.Fl.

Also spelled: Piccoloflöte, Pikkoloflöte, Piccolo-Flöte, Piccolo-Flöten

How Composers Use It

The piccolo in a German-language score: written an octave below the sound, and usually played by a flutist who doubles, so plan where the switch happens and give warning (vorbereiten) before the entry. Strauss and Mahler use it for the shrill top of a tutti and for grotesque or military color. Its middle and low registers are weak and seldom worth writing for.

Example

Tchaikovsky, Symphony No. 6 (“Pathétique”), first movement, flute part, m. 206: “Kleine Flöte vorbereiten” — prepare the piccolo; later the piccolo staff reads “Gr. Flöte vorbereiten” (m. 269).

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