Dolcissimo Italian Dulcissima Latin Echo Dolce Italian Flauto Dolcissimo Italian

Authorities disagree on the definition of this stop. Audsley lists Dolcissimo with the following description:

The term appropriately used to designate the softest flute-toned stop made. The extended term, Flauto Dolcissimo, will, however, be found more expressive, especially if the stop is voiced to yield an imitative tone - that of the orchestral Flute played pianissimo. In its best orm, the Dolcissimo is of 8 ft. pitch, constructed of small-scaled hard wood pipes, having very narrow inverted mouths. It should be voiced on wind of low pressure, not exceeding 2 1/2 inches, preferably of 1 1/2 inches.

Wedgwood describes Dolcissimo and Dulcissima as follows: “16 ft.; 8 ft. (1) Echo Dulciana (Brooklyn Tabernacle, U.S.A.); or (2) Swell Bourdon, 16 ft., borrowed as a pedal stop (e.g. by Binns).”

Irwin lists Dolcissimo with this description:

An extremely soft Foundation stop of 8' manual pitch, voiced to give a tone of unusual delicacy and sweetness. It is so soft that it may be called a Vox Angelica. This Echo Dolce tone comes from inverted-conical or conical pipes of metal, althouhg wood may easily be used.

According to Maclean, Dolcissimo was used by Casavant as a synonym for Aeoline. Other stops which claim to be the softest are Echo Dulciana Celeste, Echo Gamba, Fernflöte, Viola d'Amore, Vox Angelica, and Vox Mystica.

Variants

Examples

No examples of Dulcissima, Echo Dolce, or Flauto Dolcissimo are known. Contributions welcome.

Dolcissimo 4', Echo; Church of St Batholomew, Armley, England; Schulze 1866-69.

Dolcissimo 8' (metal), Great; St Andrew's Episcopal Church, Newcastle, Maine, USA; Hutchings 1888.

Dolcissimo 8', Hauptwerk; St. Marienkirche, Marienberg, Erzgebirge, Germany; Schubert 1879.

Bibliography