Yamaha win Japans Good Design Awards with ‘Venova’ a cross between a saxophone and a recorder

The winner at Japan’s Good Design Award this year is a newly-invented instrument by Yamaha. The Venova is a cross between a saxophone and a recorder. The name is a portmanteau of the Lain words “ventus” for wind, and “nova” for new.

The Venova still retains some of the traditional aspects of its predecessors like the reed mouthpiece and recorder fingering. But the body is significantly shorter with a unique branched pipe structure.

Venova is an instrument simple and durable enough to take anywhere. Just breathe into it and have fun making this wind instrument sing! More powerful than it looks, the Venova can also handle delicate melodies. The more you play, the more you’ll discover its wide expressive range.