Piccolo (and also the Db Piccolo) The piccolo is a special kind of flute that is pitched one octive higher. The musicians who play piccolo usually also play flute. Most pieces call for only one piccolo player, but we have encountered music that calls for two piccolos. The piccolo is extremely difficult to play, and hard to keep in tune while playing...which explains so many jokes about piccolo players. Db Piccolo Another special kind of piccolo, called a Db Piccolo (aka Military Piccolo), is sometimes used instead of the regular piccolo. Rarely used nowadays, the Db piccolo was commonly used in the first half of the 20th century. The Db piccolo is pitched a semi-tone higher than a regular piccolo. It used for some pieces that are played in keys with a lot of sharps or flats. The Db Piccolo is pitched in the key of Db (unlike the regular Piccolo which is in "concert pitch") which makes these pieces eaisier to play. One well known piece where this is the case is the Amercian march "The Stars and Stripes Forever", which we don't play very often because we are Canadians.
