1770 De bas klarinet wordt uitgevonden

The bass clarinet and basset horn were both invented around 1770.  The basset horn maker was German but his name is not known.  The first bass clarinet was made in Paris by G. Lot.  These instruments used the same mouthpiece and had the same bore size as the contemporary Bb and A clarinets.  The basset horn, usually pitched in F, had its length extended so that it was capable of playing down to "c."  The extra keys to play in this extended range were operated by the fifth fingers and the right hand thumb.