Musical Instruments and their Families

History The first type of orchestra were groups of instruments that gathered to play in ancient Egypt. The Roman Empire mostly scorned musicians, discouraging informal ensemble playing. This reappeared after the fall of the empire. Instrument families began appearing in the eleventh century, consisting of similar models differening in tones and octaves. The Middle Ages included mostly groups of certain instrument families. Modern orchestras began in the late sixteenth century when composers were writing music for instrumental groups. The instruments used were not those found today in the orchestra.

History Continued The seventeenth century showed the favoring of strings for their particular sound, which developed into the heart of the orchestra. Improvements occurred in the construction of instruments, the progress of music compositions, and the development in the technique of performance. Flutes, oboes, horns, and trumpets became part of the typical orchestra by the early eighteenth century. A typical classical orchestra also included clarinets, bassoons, violins, violas, cellos, basses, and timpani. Composers began writing for a larger orchestra, causing the size to increase over the years.

Sections Woodwinds Brass Percussion Strings To hear any of the instruments, press the speaker button

Hit Enter for Next Section Strings The four major instruments in the string family, the violin, the viola, the cello and the double bass, are built the same way. The instruments are made of many pieces of wood which are glued - never nailed - together. The body of the instrument is hollow, thus becoming a resonating box for the sound. Four strings made of animal gut, nylon, or steel are wrapped around pegs at one end of the instrument and attached to a tailpiece at the other. They are stretched tightly across a bridge to produce their assigned pitches. Hit Enter for Next Section Back to Orchestra Sections To String Instruments

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 lovely tone that can be soft and expressive or exciting and brilliant. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Next Instrument

Viola The viola is the alto voice in the string family. It is held under the chin, resting on the shoulder. The viola is slightly larger and is tuned five notes lower than the violin. It has a darker and warmer tone quality, but is not as brilliant. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Next Instrument

Cello The cello is the tenor voice in the string family. Shaped like a violin, the cello is much larger and is held between the player’s knees. Because it can produce beautiful sounds from its lowest to its highest notes, it is a popular instrument. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Next Instrument

Double Bass The double bass, or string bass is the largest and lowest instrument of the string family. The double bass has rounded shoulders instead of square shoulders like the other string instruments. Because of its size, the player stands or sits on a high stool to play it. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Woodwinds

Hit Enter for Next Section Woodwinds 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. 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. The double reed fits into a tube at the top of the instrument and vibrates when air is forced between the two reeds. Hit Enter for Next Section Back to Orchestra Sections To Woodwind Instruments

The Flute Family Flute Piccolo Alto Flute Bass Flute

Piccolo The piccolo is exactly like the flute except that it is much smaller and is usually made of silver or wood. The pitch of the piccolo is higher than that of a flute. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Next Instrument

Flute The flute is made from silver or gold 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. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Next Instrument

Alto Flute The Alto flute is the middle voice of its family. This instrument is not often called for in most arrangements for ensembles. It is used in a very few pieces.

Bass Flute The Bass flute is the lowest voice in its family. It is not commonly used in ensembles and is very difficult to play because of the amount of breath control needed to produce a clean and clear tone.

Oboe The Oboe is the soprano voice of the double reed family. It uses a very small version of the double reed, which means that the two pieces of cane vibrate together to produce sound instead of one reed against the mouthpiece.

English Horn The English Horn is the middle voice of the double reed family. This instrument is only used in higher level high school and college literature.

Bassoon The Bassoon is typically the lowest voice in the double reed family. It is used in all settings, but not recommended for outdoor use in marching bands.

Contrabassoon The Contrabassoon is definitely the lowest voice in the double reed family with the biggest reed. This instrument is called for in some higher literature for orchestra and even less commonly in orchestra.

The Clarinet Family B-flat Clarinet E-flat Clarinet A Clarinet Bass Clarinet Contrabass Clarinet

Clarinet 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. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Next Instrument

B-flat Clarinet B-flat clarinet is the first clarinet that students use, and continues through the musical career. It is used in almost every musical ensemble.

E-flat Clarinet The E-flat clarinet is the soprano voice of the clarinet family. It is most commonly used in upper level collegiate music and only some difficult high school band literature.

A Clarinet The A Clarinet is most commonly used in orchestral music. Students typically do not play this clarinet until they seek to play at a professional level.

Bass Clarinet The Bass Clarinet is the most commonly used lower voice in the clarinet family. The transition from B-flat to Bass clarinet typically takes place in high school after students understand the proper embouchure and finger placement on the smaller instrument.

Contrabass Clarinet The Contrabass clarinet is the lowest voice and the largest instrument in the clarinet family. This instrument is only used in some pieces for band and orchestra, but not many.

The Saxophone Family Soprano Saxophone Alto Saxophone Tenor Saxophone Baritone Saxophone

Soprano Saxophone This is the smallest member of the saxophone family. Soprano Sax is typically used in some high school music, but mostly in upper level collegiate and professional ensembles

Alto Saxophone The Alto Saxophone is the most commonly used model in the saxophone family. It can be played in almost any setting, but is not typically used in orchestral music.

Tenor Saxophone Tenor Saxophone produces deeper tones and the range of the instrument is lower than the alto or soprano saxophones. It is also considerably larger than the alto or soprano.

Baritone Saxophone The Baritone Saxophone is the largest of the commonly used saxophones. Its tone is deeper and lower than the other saxes and is most commonly heard in jazz ensembles.

Hit Enter for Next Section Brass Brass Family instruments produce their unique sound by the player buzzing his/her lips while blowing air through a cup- or funnel-shaped 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; and the longer the tubing length, the larger the instrument, and the lower the sound. The main instruments of the brass family include the trumpet, horn, trombone, and tuba. Hit Enter for Next Section Back to Orchestra Sections To Brass Instruments

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. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Percussion

Trumpet The trumpet is the highest sounding member of the brass family. The brilliant tone of the trumpet travels through about 6 - ½ feet of tubing bent into an oblong shape. The player presses the three valves in various combinations with the fingers of the right hand to obtain various pitches. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Next Instrument

Trombone The mouthpiece of the trombone is larger than that of a trumpet, and gives the instrument 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. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Next Instrument

Tuba Made of about 16 feet of tubing, the tuba is the lowest sounding member of the brass family. The tuba has four to five valves and is held upright in the player’s lap. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Next Instrument

Hit Enter for Next Section Percussion With a name that means, "the hitting of one body against another," instruments in the percussion family are played by being struck, shaken, or scraped. In the orchestra, the percussion section provides a variety of rhythms, textures and tone colors. The percussion instruments are an international family, with ancestors from the Middle East, Asia, Africa, the Americas and Europe representing musical styles from many different cultures. Hit Enter for Next Section Back to Orchestra Sections To Percussion Instruments

Snare Drum The snare drum has two calfskin or plastic drumheads 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 head, the snares produce a characteristic sharp rattling sound as they vibrate against the bottom head. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Next Instrument

Cymbals Made from two large, slightly concave brass plates, cymbals are fitted with leather hand straps and are shaped so that when they are crashed together, only the edges touch. Different sized cymbals produce a wide range of sound effects. Cymbals are also played by being struck with drumsticks or mallets while suspended on a string or stand. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Next Instrument

Bass Drum The composer Mozart added the deep, booming, sound of the bass drum to the orchestra in 1782. Constructed like a snare drum, but without snares, the bass drum 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. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Next Instrument

Tambourine The tambourine is a shallow, handheld drum made of a circular wooden frame with a calfskin or plastic drumhead stretched across the top. The tambourine has small discs called jingles set into its circular frame which produce sound when the tambourine is shaken, rubbed, or struck on the drum head with the knuckles. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Next Instrument

Triangle The triangle is made from a small round steel tube, and is played by striking it with a steel beater. Its bright shimmering sound is untuned and resembles that of a bell. The triangle first joined the orchestra in the late 1700s. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Next Instrument

Timpani Timpani 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. Most orchestras use three or four timpani of varying sizes. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Next Instrument

Xylophone First used in the orchestra just over a century ago, the xylophone is a tuned instrument made of hardwood bars in graduated lengths set horizontally 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. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Next Instrument

Chimes Chimes are a tuned instrument consisting of a set of 12 to 18 metal tubes hung from a metal frame. The metal tubes range from 1 to 2 ½ inches in diameter and from 4 to 6 feet in length. 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. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Keyboards

Percussion -Keyboards Keyboard instruments are often classified as percussion instruments because they play a rhythmic role in some music. However, 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. Back to Orchestra Sections To Keyboard Instruments

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. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for Next Instrument

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. One of the largest concert hall organs in the world has four keyboards, 244 keys, 32 pedals and 4,535 pipes. The largest pipe is 32 feet high while the smallest pipe is less than one inch in height. Back to Orchestra Sections Hit Enter for The End

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