The xaphoon ( ) is a chromatic keyless single-reed woodwind instrument invented in 1972, and a registered trademark of its inventor, Brian Lee Wittman. It has a closed cylindrical bore and a very slightly flared bell. The xaphoon has a full chromatic range of two octaves, and overblows at the twelfth like the clarinet.

thumb|right|upright=0.8|A B♭ Xaphoon from Maui

History

The first xaphoon, made out of bamboo in 1972, was a spontaneous effort by Brian Wittman, a saxophonist and multi-instrumentalist from Hawaii, to create an instrument for a young child who liked the sound of the saxophone. After failing to get a satisfactory sound out of an improvised bamboo flute, Wittman cut a mouthpiece opening and attached a tenor sax reed to it. Wittman was impressed by the sound of the simple instrument. After playing it at performances, other musicians were curious and asked him to make more; thus he refined the instrument, patented it, The standard range is two octaves, although experienced players are able to extend the range of the larger sized instruments above that.

  • Xaphoon example, "Bei Mir Bistu Shein"