Bock: Austria musical instrument

The bock is a musical instrument that was played in the modern days central Europe which are, Austria, Germany, Poland and Czech Republic. The life style of playing this musical instrument came into the countries in the 20^th century. The name bock, which is called “buck” in German local language connotes “male goat.” And it refers to the use of goatskin to construct the bag similar to the common use of other goat-terms for bagpipes in many other countries like the French cabrette.

source of picture: en.wikipedia.org

The earliest explanation of the mouth-blown musical instrument is fully explained on plate XI and described by Michael Praetorius in his treatise, Syntagma Musicum 2, De Organographia (Wolfenbüttel, 1619), plates given differently as Theatrum Instrumentorum (1620).

The drone of the bock is always pitched two octaves below the tonic of the chanter. The single drone and single chanter possess cylindrical bores and adopt single reeds. The difference of the bock is generally bellows-blown that has the advantage of letting the piper to sing ass he is playing the instrument. These bagpipes are believed to have seen their way into the Southern and Western Bohemia in first half of the 19^th century.

The top end of the chanter is often shaped in a way that it looks like the goat-head and the chanter together with the drone finish in amplifying the bells of horn or brass, are angled upward. The musical instrument is mostly played in the Czech Republic and specifically in South Bohemia in Strakonice and in western Bohemia around Chodsko, and as the instrument went on spreading it gained ground in Austria and Bavaria.