Music Instruments: Strings, Brass, Woodwinds, and Percussion Report

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Outline

Music instruments are categorized according to the sound they produce and research has shown that, there are string instruments which have strings, percussion instruments which have hammers and woodwind instruments made of brass. Most of them are a modification of the instrument used in the ancient times and the sounds produced are generated from various vibrations from different sources. In stringed instruments, strings vibrate through plucking and bowing while in instruments such as piano, the sound is produced through hitting. Variations in sound is made through adjusting the tightening of the strings in the case of the string family or by varying the texture of the material used to make the instrument.

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Introduction

The following is a report on various instruments in different families of instrument such as string instrument, the brass, woodwinds and percussion. Various roles of the instrument such as providing harmony and melody as well as rhythm are learnt from various instruments. The color of the instruments largely depends on the material that has made the instrument which means the material also form the texture of the desired form depending on the desired role. Mastering and learning the sounds are skills that are learnt through the right etiquette. (Colwell, 1969, pp. 56-58)

Composers Report

The string family comprises of violin, viola and violoncello as well as the double bass instruments. Violin originated from early instruments in Europe and Asia during middle Ages where original instruments included vielle and the rotta as well as fiddle which were used during dancing and singing. Modern violin is made of wood such as spruce and maple. Similar to violin, most stringed instruments have common parts such as fingerboard, bridge, scroll, F-holes and tailpiece. Violin has a melodic character with a soprano voice and can play several notes simultaneously; referred to as double stop technique and can play at higher register than the rest of the family. Viola has a clumsy nature but very valued today and research shows that, it was discovered earlier than violin though it has similar parts to violin and produces alto voice. It provides rhythmical precision among the string family and thus supports violin. Violoncello is a large instrument and produces the most beautiful melody and is made of same parts as viola and violin. It is a solo instrument and therefore very respected in music scenes and produces a tenor voice which is rich and resonant. Double bass is very large but the most recent of the string family and is referred using several names such as contrabass, upright brass as well as the string brass. Its role is to give rhythmic and harmonic support to the string orchestra and produces the lowest sound in its family. (Colwell, 1969, pp. 59-61)

The brass family comprises of trumpet, French horn and trombone as well as tuba. Among these, the most exciting is the trumpet which in the ancient times was made of wood; horns and bones that amplified the voice but the modern one are made of brass mixed with nickel. The family has the most important parts as mouthpiece/receiver, bell, water key, valves and tuning pipe. The instruments in the family are easy to learn but mastering them proves to be difficult. French horn was used by hunters but today is used to provide nice sounds in the orchestra. Trombone is unique in that, it is the only one in the family that makes use of a slide and was used in church music but today is used even in concert halls. Tuba produces the lowest sound in the orchestra but is very powerful and has similar parts as the rest in the brass family.

Woodwinds comprise of flute, piccolo, clarinet, English horn and bassoon. The instruments in this family are made of wood, silver and so their sounds are clear bright and can penetrate more. Similar parts are head joints, embouchure, tail joint, tuning slide and barrel. They are easy to play but require one to produce a beautiful sound. Percussion family which has a variety of rhythmic instrument as well as accessories must produce a sound when hit or struck and provide beats as well as maintain rhythm and playing melodic passages in orchestra. Regarding the color of the instruments, it depends on the material that has made the instrument such as wood, silver or brass. During the listening of the sounds, certain areas of brain receive stimulation. Such areas are related to development as well as coordination of the muscles in the brain.

Conclusion

The tour in various music instruments has provided historical facts and characteristics such as the materials used to make them. Such materials mostly included wood, horns and bones but in the modern times, they have been modified and brasses as well as silver are being used. Most of the roles of the studied instruments were to provide harmony, rhythm and melodious sounds in various occasions including churches. It is evident that, majority of the instruments in various families were a modification of the ancient instruments during the Middle Ages.

Reference

Colwell R. (1969): The Teaching of Instrumental Music: Appleton-Century-Crofts pp. 56-61. Web.

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IvyPanda. 2022. "Music Instruments: Strings, Brass, Woodwinds, and Percussion." August 24, 2022. https://ivypanda.com/essays/music-report-strings-amp-brass-woodwinds-percussion/.

1. IvyPanda. "Music Instruments: Strings, Brass, Woodwinds, and Percussion." August 24, 2022. https://ivypanda.com/essays/music-report-strings-amp-brass-woodwinds-percussion/.


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IvyPanda. "Music Instruments: Strings, Brass, Woodwinds, and Percussion." August 24, 2022. https://ivypanda.com/essays/music-report-strings-amp-brass-woodwinds-percussion/.

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