cornetto
/kɔːˈnɛtəʊ
/(also cornett /ˈkɔːnɪt/ /kɔːˈnɛt/)
noun (plural cornetti /kɔːˈnɛti/ or cornetts)
A woodwind instrument of the 16th and 17th centuries, typically curved, with finger holes and a cup-shaped mouthpiece.From the 1570s several north Italian composers wrote such pieces, which could be played either by an ensemble (perhaps a viol consort or a group of cornetts and sackbuts) or on a keyboard instrument....
- The multi-skills of the instrumentalists is a source of wonder and, again, the virtuosity is of a sort that does not seek to dazzle; cornetts and shawms are harder than they sound here.
- Their concert, entitled Per Cantare e Sonare, consisted of pieces by Monteverdi and his lesser-known contemporaries, the cornetto often standing in for a second voice.
Origin
Late 19th century: from Italian, diminutive of corno 'horn', from Latin cornu. Compare with cornet1.