Instruments and Sound Technique

Instrumentation The main orchestral instruments are: FluteOboeClarinetBassoon

Each of these instruments has a “relative”: Flute – Piccolo

Oboe – English Horn

Clarinet – Bass Clarinet

Bassoon – Contra Bassoon

Woodwinds are made of... These instruments were all once made of wood and because they were played by blowing air or wind they were called “woodwind”.

Range The highest sounding instrument is the piccolo as it is the instrument with the shortest tubing.

Producing Sound On a woodwind instrument the tone is produce by a column of air vibrating within a pipe that has holes along its length. When these holes are opened or closed, the length of the vibrating air column within the pipe has changed, thus producing different pitches.

Different Categories for organizing the instruments These ways of producing sound are: Air Blown – flutes, recorders Single Reed (with air) – clarinets, saxophones, bass clarinets Double Reed (with air) – oboe, English horn, bassoon

Other Woodwind Instruments Soprano, Alto, Tenor and Baritone Saxophones are classified as Woodwind Instruments. Although they look like they belong to the brass family they all need a single reed to vibrate in order to produce a sound.

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