The alphorn is the Swiss national instrument and symbol of dairy farming. The alphorn is crooked like a fir grown on a hillside it resembles. The wooden mouthpiece facilitates the generation of natural sounds, which are touching and heart-warming. Since 1910, the Swiss Yodeling Association has promoted the alphorn tradition in courses.
Instruments similar to the Alphorn (Australian Didjeridu, Bibilcal Shofar) have been in existance for nearly 100,000 years. The early instruments were used to signal warnings often for military use, but in the mountainous area of the Alps, it was more commonly used to announce daily activities. Archaeological records of the Alphorn in Switzerland date back to the Celtic tribes on the northern slopes of the Alps about two thousand years ago. References to the modern Alphorn in Switzerland date to the early 16th century. By the 18th century, Alphorn melodies were written down by composers who incorporated them into their own compositions (Johannes Brahms, Symphony Number 1, in c minor). Today the Alphorn is not used by herdsmen for signaling, but primarily by amateur musicians.
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION:    
The Alphorn is a hollow tube made with wooden strips (spruce) bound with birch bark or cane. It is conical bore with an upturned (or straight) bell and wooden mouthpiece similar to that of the modern horn. They range in length from 10.6 feet to 13.5 feet. The bells are often ornately decorated with painting or carvings. The instrument is supported by small feet located under the bell.
Not as the name suggests, this gigantic trumpet made ​​of wood, not horns. Anyway what animals have horns for this.