7/23/2019 Section 2 - The Principles of Musical Instruments

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The principles of musical instruments

 Throughout history, various methods of musical instrument classication have

been used. The most commonly used system divides instruments into string,

woodwind, brass and percussion – however, other schemes have been devised.

Common instruments in the string family include the violin, guitar, sitar, electricbass, viola, cello, harp, double bass, rebab, banjo, mandolin, ukulele, and

bouzouki. n the other hand, popular instruments in the woodwind family

consists of! the bassoon, oboe, sa"ophone, and clarinet. #lso, the brass family

includes! the trumpet, horn, euphonium, tuba, cornet, tenor horn, baritone horn,

sousaphone, mellophone, and the sa"ophone. $nlike most of the other players in

the orchestra, a percussionist will usually play many di%erent instruments in one

piece of music. The most common percussion instruments in the orchestra

include the timpani, "ylophone, cymbals, triangle, snare, drum, bass drum,

tambourine, maracas, gongs, chimes, celesta, and piano.

&tringed 'nstrument

Instrume

nt

Physical

appearance

Played Other

(uitar

&i" strings made

from nylon and

silver plated

copper, )* to

+)mm wide at

the nut. ue to

low string

tension, the

neck of the

guitar can be

entirely made

out of wood.

-lucked

strumm

ed

/re0uency range! *12z – 34352z

ynamic range! ppp – %f 

 Timbre is most typically e"pressed on the

guitar by the position of the picking hand in

relationship to the bridge and sound hole.

-laying toward the ngerboard side of the

sound hole emphasises the fundamental

tone and yields a warmer, darker sound

called sul tasto. The several harmonics that

you can use on a guitar are! open6string,

fretted, articial, and pinched – using these

eliminates the fundamental 7loudest sound

produced8 and the other overtones,

producing a nice e%ect that many guitarists

like to use.

9oodwind 'nstrument

Instrument

Physicalappearance

Played Other

&a"ophon

e

$sually made of

brass and played

with a single

reed

mouthpiece. The

material usedhas little, if any,

:lown

/re0uency range! ;42z – **<2z

ynamic range! ppp – %f 

#dolphe &a" wanted to create a woodwind

that sounded like a string instrument. The

timbre of his solution is therefore highly

versatile. 9hen a player uses a

mouthpiece, the tone is very bright and

suitable for jazz. #lternatively, a

sa"ophonist can use a classical mouthpiece

made from hard rubber for a darker,smoother tone. =any high school level

7/23/2019 Section 2 - The Principles of Musical Instruments

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e%ect on the

sound, and

physical

dimensions give

the mouthpiece

its tone colour.

sa"ophone players use cheaper plastic6

made mouthpieces, which may yield a tone

0uality roughly between those of metal and

hard rubber, but lacking the best 0ualities

of both. 'n order to play the overtones, you

need to think about your embouchure,especially the shape of your oral cavity and

tongue position. 2armonics are useful for

altissimo playing, as well as some e%ects

such as false ngerings.-ercussion 'nstrument

Instrume

nt

Physical

appearance

Played Other

-iano

#n acoustic

piano usually

has a protectivewooden case

surrounding the

soundboard and

metal strings. 't

also has a row of 

** black and

white keys 7+1

white, 4> black8,

with

appro"imately

14> stringsinside. The outer

rim of a piano is

made from

hardwood,

typically hard

maple or beech,

in order to

prohibit

longevity. 't

serves as an

essentiallyimmobile object

from which the

?e"ible

soundboard can

best vibrate.

&truck

/re0uency range! 1*2z – )3*>2z

ynamic range! *+db 7measured 3<metres

away8 The original name for a piano was

pianoforte, which means soft@loud, due to it

being played in that respective manner. #

way of describing the tone colour of the

piano is by the feelings it invokes when

heard. # soft melancholy piece could be

said to be sombre, whereas if a piece is

bright and lively the piano could be said to

be possess a vibrant colour.

 The harmonics of a piano is determined by

its string length and mass 7piano size8. Thisis due to when a piano is struck, the strings

are sounded and silenced when the keys

are released, by the use of pedals.

:y #kai. =