Instruments Lesson 6

Brass instruments produce their sound by the player buzzing lips while blowing air through a mouthpiece.

The mouthpiece connects to a length of brass tubing ending in a bell.

The shorter the tubing length, the smaller the instrument, and the higher the sound.

The longer the tubing length, the larger the instrument, and the lower the sound.

Trumpet

The trumpet is the highest sounding member of the brass family. The brilliant tone of the trumpet travels through about 6½ feet of bent tubing. The player presses the three valves in different combinations with

the fingers to make

various pitches.

French Horn

The french horn consists of about 12 feet of narrow tubing wound into a circle. The

player obtains different notes on the horn

with a clear mellow sound by pressing

valves with the left hand and by

moving the right hand

inside of the bell.

Brass Family - Toot

Trombone

The trombone has a more mellow sound. Instead of valves, the trombone has a

slide which changes the length of its approximately 9 feet of tubing to

reach different pitches.

Tuba

Made of about 16 feet of tubing, the tuba is the lowest sounding member of the brass family. The tuba has three to

five valves and is held upright in

the player’s lap.

Originally made of wood, the flute is now made from Metal and is about 2 feet in length. It looks like a narrow tube with a row of holes covered by keys along one side. The player blows air across the small hole in the mouthpiece to produce a

sound that can be either soft and

mellow or high and piercing.

The three branches of the woodwind family have different sources of sound.

Vibrations begin when air is blown across the top of an instrument, across a single reed, or across two reeds.

Reeds are small pieces of cane.

A single reed is clamped to a mouthpiece at the top of the instrument and vibrates against the mouthpiece when air is blown between the reed and the mouthpiece.

Two reeds tied together are commonly known as a double reed.

This double reed fits into a tube at the top of the instrument and vibrates when air is forced between the two reeds.

Flute

Made from wood, the clarinet produces a fluid sound when air is blown between a single reed and the mouthpiece. By pressing metal keys with the fingers of both hands, the player has the ability

to play many different notes

very quickly.

Piccolo

Clarinet

Bass Clarinet

The piccolo is exactly like the flute except that it is much smaller and is usually made of metal or wood. The pitch of the piccolo is higher

than a flute.

The bass clarinet is a larger and lower sounding relative of the clarinet.

Like the clarinet, the bass clarinet

is a single-reed instrument

and is made of wood.

Woodwind Family - Whistle

The contra bassoon is much like the bassoon, except it is larger and

its sound is much lower.

Bassoon

The saxophone is the only woodwind instrument made of brass. It has a single reed

like the clarinet.

Saxophone

The bassoon is a large double reed instrument with a lower sound than the other woodwind instruments. When the player blows air between the reeds, the vibrating column of air inside the instrument travels over nine feet

to the bottom of the instrument, then

up to the top where the

sound comes out.

Contra Bassoon

The English horn is another double-reed instrument. It is larger than the oboe and

its sound much lower.

Oboe

The oboe like the clarinet is made from wood and has metal keys that can produce many notes rapidly. Unlike the clarinet, the oboe does not have a mouthpiece, but has two reeds tied together. By placing them between one's lips and blowing air

through them, the reeds vibrate

and produce a sound.

English Horn

The snare drum has two calfskin or plastic drum heads stretched tightly over a hollow metal frame. The top head is struck with wooden drumsticks, and is called

the batter-head. The bottom head, or snare-head

has catgut or metal wires called snares stretched

tightly across it. When this drum is struck

on the top, the snares produce a rattling

sound as they vibrate

against the bottom.

The percussion family means "the hitting of one body against another," and are played by being struck, shaken, or scraped.

Percussion instruments are either tuned or untuned.

Tuned instruments play specific pitches or notes, just like the woodwind, brass and string instruments.

Untuned instruments produce a sound without a definite pitch, like the sound of a hand knocking on a door.

Snare Drum

Bass Drum

Timpani, also called kettledrums, are constructed of a large copper bowl with a drumhead made of calfskin or plastic stretched across the top. When struck with felt-tipped wooden sticks, or mallets, timpani

produce a specific pitch that is determined by

the drum's size. That pitch is fine-tuned by

tightening the drumhead with

keys and foot pedals.

The Bass Drum is made like a snare drum, but without snares. It is much larger and is played on its side, so that either head may be struck. The beater or mallet for a bass drum is large with a soft material such as

sheep's wool covering the end.

Timpani

Cymbals are made from two large, brass plates. They are fitted with leather hand straps and are shaped so that when they are crashed together, only the edges touch. Although cymbals are untuned instruments, different sized cymbals produce a wide range of sound effects. Some are so small that they

are played with just the fingers. Cymbals are also

played by being struck with drumsticks or

mallets while suspended on a

string or stand.

Cymbals

Tambourine

The tambourine is a shallow, hand held drum made of a circular wooden frame with a calfskin or plastic drum head stretched across the top.

The tambourine has small discs called

jingles set into its circular frame

which produce sound.

Percussion Family - Boom

Xylophone

The xylophone, meaning "wood sound", is a tuned instrument made of hardwood bars on a metal frame. With the larger, lower-sounding bars on the left, the notes of the xylophone are laid out much like a

piano keyboard. Striking the bars with

hard mallets produces a bright,

sharp sound.

Also called orchestra bells, the glockenspiel, which means "to play the bells", resembles a small

xylophone, but it is made of steel bars. It is

typically played with wooden or plastic

mallets, producing a high tuned sound

that is bright and penetrating.

Glockenspiel

Chimes

Chimes are a tuned instrument consisting of a set of 12 to 18 metal tubes hung from a metal frame. The

chimes, or tubular bells, are struck with a mallet and sound like church bells when played. The longer

the length of tube that is struck, the

lower the pitch that is created.

Gongs are large disc-shaped pieces of brass that are hit with a large soft mallet. Their size can range from just a few inches to huge ones

that are larger than a person. The

gong always adds drama whenever

it is played.

Gong

Castanets

The guiro is made from a gourd that has been carved or notched to create a ridged surface. The guiro is played by scraping the surface

with a stick. Modern guiros are made of materials such as plastic,

metal and wood.

Castanets consist of two pieces of hard wood in the shape of a shell that are hinged together.

When the wood pieces strike each other,

they create a sound that is often

associated with Spanish

dances.

Guirro

Instruments

Unit 6

String instruments are made of many pieces of wood

which are glued - never nailed - together.

If the instrument has a body, it is hollow,

thus becoming a resonating box for the sound.

Typically there are four strings (sometimes five on the double-bass) made of animal gut, nylon, or steel that are wrapped around pegs at one end of the instrument and attached to a tailpiece at the other.

Strings are stretched tightly across a bridge

to produce their assigned pitches.

Cello

Guitars are not played with a bow. They are strummed or picked and held across the player's body.

The cello is the tenor voice in the string family. While shaped like a violin, the cello is much larger and is held between the player’s knees. It can produce beautiful sounds from its lowest to its highest notes.

Violin

The viola is the alto voice in the string family. The viola is slightly larger than the violin and has a lower sound. It has a darker and warmer tone quality

than the violin.

The violin is the soprano voice in the string family. It is held under the chin, resting on the shoulder. The violin has a

tone that can be soft and expressive

or exciting and brilliant.

String Family - Pluck

The double bass(string bass) is the largest and lowest instrument of the string family. Because of its size, the player stands or sits on a high stool to play the double bass.

Viola

Guitar

The harp is not like any other member of the string family. It has about 45 strings stretched across its tall triangular frame. The strings are plucked by hand while seven pedals at the bottom of the harp adjust the length of the strings to produce additional notes.

String Bass

Harp

Keyboard instruments are often classified as percussion instruments because they play a rhythmic role in some music.

Most keyboard instruments are not true members of the percussion family because their sound is not produced by the vibration of a membrane or solid material.

Harpsichord

Keyboard Family

The harpsichord works when small hooks called quills pluck the strings when the player's hand presses a key on

the keyboard.

Piano

Sound is produced on the piano by small hammers striking strings. The hammers are controlled mechanically and

strike the strings when the

player's hands press the

piano keys.

Organ

When an organist presses the keys of an organ,

air is allowed to flow into corresponding

pipes. The vibration of the air in the pipes

creates the sound of the organ. There

are keyboards for both the

hands and feet.

Soprano

- Highest Notes

Alto

Medium High Notes -

http://www.thirteen.org/publicarts/orchestra/index.html

Tenor

- Medium Low Notes

Bass

Lowest Notes -

Instruments

4 Families