Instruments of the Orchestra Instruments of the Orchestra · In a symphony orchestra the instruments are divided up into four main sections or groups. • Strings • Woodwind •
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Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
INTRODUCTION TO THE ORCHESTRA - Factsheet
1
An orchestra is a group of musicians who play together. The main difference between an orchestraand a band is that an orchestra contains stringed instruments as well as brass, woodwind andpercussion.
There are several types of orchestra:• a string orchestra, which as the
name suggests contains onlystringed instruments
• a dance orchestra, which has asmall string section but is mainlywoodwind and percussioninstruments
• a symphony orchestra whichusually has a large string sectionas well as brass, woodwind andpercussion sections.
In a symphony orchestra the instruments are divided up into four main sections or groups.• Strings • Woodwind • Brass • Percussion
The size of an orchestra can vary enormously from a small chamber orchestra which has between15 and 40 players and a full symphony orchestra which can have as many as 100 people.
THE SCORE & THE ROLE OF THE CONDUCTOR
Orchestral music is written out on a score. A full score is used by the conductor and shows all themusic for all the instruments together. Each instrument will then have a copy of the music of theirpart rather than having to follow a score with allthe instruments on it. In full scores the instrumentsare usually grouped together by section so that it iseasier for the conductor to follow.
The violin section of the orchestra is usually dividedup into two groups: 1st violins and 2nd violins. Theleader of the orchestra is the leader of the 1st violinsection and sits at the front to assist the conductor.Orchestras have steadily increased in size throughthe centuries and originally the leader of the violinswould have also directed the orchestra and therewouldn’t have been a conductor. As orchestras grewin size it became difficult to play and conduct so aseparate conductor began to direct the orchestra.
It is the conductor’s job to make sure that themusicians keep time with one another and to helpwith the interpretation and performance of a piece.This may include the tempo (speed), dynamics(whether the music should be loud or soft) andphrasing. Often the conductor will choose the musicthat is to be performed and even help to auditionthe musicians.
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
THE VIOLIN - Factsheet
The violin is the smallest member of the stringfamily found in an orchestra. The earliest violinswere made in Italy around 1550 and developedfrom the medieval fiddle and rebec.
The bow is a stick with horsehair stretched tightlyacross it. As the bow is drawn across the stringsit makes them vibrate and so sound is produced.The modern bow is called a tourte bow afterFrançois Tourte who invented it. The pitch of thenotes is altered as the violinist presses down onthe strings along the fingerboard at the same timeas drawing the bow across the strings. Shorteningthe strings produces higher notes.
If you see the word pizzicato (pizz.) written onmusic it indicates that the performer should pluckthe strings rather than play using the bow. Whenthe bow is needed again you will see the wordarco written in the music.
A mute looks rather like a three-pronged combthat is fitted over the bridge. It limits thevibrations of the strings and so softens the soundof the instrument. If a string player is asked toplay con sordino this means play using the mute.
The most famous makers of the violin wereStradivari and Guarneri and their instrumentscommand very high prices today.
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Orchestral position
Scroll
Peg BoxTuning pegs
Fingerboard
Strings
Soundboard
Bridge
Sound hole
E-string tuner
Tailpiece
Chinrest
Button
Point
Stick
Hair
Nut
Screw
Famous works for violin:Six Solo Partitas J.S.BachFour Seasons Concertos VivaldiHaffner Serenade MozartViolin Concerto in D Major BeethovenSonata in G Major Brahms
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
Scroll
Peg BoxTuning pegs
Fingerboard
Strings
Soundboard
Bridge
Soundhole
E-stringtuner
Tailpiece
Chinrest
Button
Point
Stick
Hair
Nut
Screw
THE VIOLA - Factsheet
3
The size of the viola can vary although it isalways larger than the violin, usually around7.5cm (3 inches) longer. However it is madein exactly the same way as the violin. Becauseof its extra size the viola has a more mellowsound than the violin and its pitch is lower.Early violas were rather large so fewmusicians could play it comfortably. As aresult the viola was not very popular untilthe size became more manageable.
It wasn’t until the eighteenth century thatcomposers really began to explore themusical possibilities of this instrument. Someof the later string quartets by Haydn andMozart were the first examples of the violahaving a prominent part to play. Before thistime the viola usually doubled the cello part.In a string quartet there is one viola.
Music for the viola is written in the alto clefexcept for very high notes which are writtenin the treble clef. The alto clef looks like this:
In the alto clef middle C is found onthe middle line.
Orchestral position
Famous works for viola:Brandenburg Concerto No.6 J.S.BachSymphony No.10 (opening) MahlerSinfonia Concertante MozartHarold in Italy BerliozSonata in D Minor Glinka
Famous viola players:
William PrimroseYuri BashmetLionel TertisPaul Hindemith
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
THE VIOLA - Worksheet
3
Fill in the other half of the diagramof the viola and the bow and see howmany parts of the instrument youcan name.
Here are ten statements about the viola. Answer true or false.
1. Yehudi Menuhin and Vanessa Mae are famous viola players? __________2. The viola has four strings? __________3. The viola is the highest member of the string family? __________4. The violas are usually divided up into 1st violas and 2nd violas in the orchestra? __________5. The viola was developed from the viola da gamba? __________6. In a string quartet there is usually one viola? __________7. The viola is sometimes called the fiddle? __________8. Glinka wrote a Sonata in D Minor for the viola? __________9. Music for the viola is mainly written in the alto clef? __________10. The lowest note that can be played on the viola is the C below middle C? __________
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
THE CELLO - Factsheet
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The cello or violoncello was first developed inthe sixteenth century. For many years the violada gamba which is a close relative of the cellowas the more popular instrument. However,by the eighteenth century the cello had rapidlyincreased in popularity both as a soloinstrument and as part of the orchestra. Youcan also find a cello in a string quartet.
The Baroque cello provided the bass line inboth orchestral and smaller chamber piecesalong with the harpsichord. This bass lineplaying is called continuo playing.
The cello uses a shorter and thicker bow thanthe violin or viola and is fitted with aretractable spike on the base of theinstrument so that it can rest on the floor.
Cello music is written in the bass clefalthough sometimes the tenor or treble clefis used for very high notes. The tenor cleflooks very similar to the alto clef butmiddle C is found on the fourth line and notthe middle line.
Orchestral position
Cello pitch range
Famous works for cello:Six Suites for Solo Cello J.S.BachCello Concerto ElgarThe Swan Saint-SaensCello Concerto DvorakSonata for Cello & Orchestra Penderecki
Famous cellists:
Pablo CasalsJacqueline DuPreand MstislavRostropovich
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
THE DOUBLE BASS - Factsheet
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The double bass is the lowest soundingmember of the orchestral string family. Itwas developed during the sixteenth centuryfrom the violone or double bass viol. Becauseof its size it was a difficult instrument to playand through the years several attempts havebeen made to make it easier to play.
There are two types of bow used with thedouble bass; a French bow which is heldoverhand like a violin bow and the Simandlbow which was named after its inventor andis held with the palm of the hand facing up.
The double bass is often used in jazz anddance bands as well as in the orchestra. Theaverage size of the double bass is 1.8m high(around 6ft), so performers have to eitherstand or sit on a stool to play. Most doublebasses have four strings although someinstruments have five strings.
Double bass music is usually written usingthe bass clef although it does occasionallyuse both the tenor and treble clef. It alwayssounds an octave lower than written.
Orchestral position
Double bass pitch range(sounds one ocatve lowerthan written)
Famous works for double bass:Trout quintet for piano& strings SchubertSeptet Op.20 BeethovenAlso sprach Zarathustra StraussThe Elephant Saint-Saens
Famous double bassists
Charlie MingusDominico DragonettiStuart KnussenDuncan McTierSerge Koussevitsky
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
THE HARP - Factsheet
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The harp has the largest range of anyorchestral instrument. It became a regularfeature of the orchestra in the Romantic period(the nineteenth century). Simple harpshowever existed for many centuries before.
The harp is a very versatile instrument indeed.A harpist can pluck single strings or playseveral strings at one time producing chords.Some of the strings are differently coloured toguide the player. On a modern harp there are47 strings.
Harps have a double action mechanism, thisenables the player to alter the pitch of theinstrument by up to a tone by using one ofthree pedals. Some harps have up to sevenpedals so that the pitch of all strings with thesame letter name can be altered.
Harp music is written on two staves ratherlike piano music and it uses both treble andbass clef.
When a harpist plays a fast, rippling scale itis called a glissando and it is perhaps thissound that most people associate with theinstrument.
Orchestral position
Famous works for harp:Carmen BizetIntroduction et allegro RavelSonata for harp HindemithConcerto for flute,harp and orchestra Mozart
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
THE HARP - Worksheet
6
Read the statements below and answer true or false, then label the diagram of the harp.
1. The pedals on a harp are used to change the pitch of the instrument? _________2. When a harpist plays a rippling scale it is called a glissando? _________3. The strings on a harp are usually just one colour? _________4. The harp can have as many as seven pedals? _________5. The harpist usually leads the string section of an orchestra? _________6. Mozart wrote a concerto for flute, harp and orchestra? _________7. The harpist usually plays using a bow? _________8. The harp became a regular member of the orchestra in the 19th century? _________9. There are 57 strings on a modern harp? _________10. Harp music is written on two staves? _________
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
THE STRING SECTION - Factsheet
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The orchestra has steadily grown in sizethroughout the centuries and the stringsection forms the largest part of an orchestra.In a Baroque orchestra there would havebeen around six violins, three violas, twocellos and one double bass. By the Romanticperiod the violins had been divided into twogroups; 1st violins and 2nd violins and liketoday there were generally at least thirtyviolins, twelve violas, ten cellos and eightdouble basses.
Another stringed instrument that can befound in the orchestra is the harp. Only oneor two of these instruments, if any, are usedas many composers do not include thisinstrument when writing music.
Orchestral positions of the string section
1st Violins
2nd Violins
Violas
Cellos
Double Bass
Harp
Harp
Violin Viola Cello Double Bass
Violin pitch range
Viola pitch range
Cello pitch range
Double bass pitch range(sounds one octave lowerthan written)
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
THE FLUTE & PICCOLO - Factsheet
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The flute as we know it first came to Europe in thetwelfth century and was originally used in militarybands. By the seventeenth century the flute wasused mostly in orchestras and its design graduallybegan to change.
The Hotteterre family from France were the first toreally alter the design of the flute. The design ofthe Hotteterre flute had three sections and one keyrather than just holes. Theobold Boehm added morekeys and his flutes which were developed in thenineteenth century, have become the basis formodern flute design. This is called the BoehmSystem.
Both the flute and the piccolo are transverse or sideblown instruments in which the player blows acrossthe hole in the mouthpiece. The piccolo sounds oneoctave higher than the flute and its music is writtenone octave lower than it sounds. The word piccolomeans ‘little’ in Italian and you can see from thepicture that it is smaller than the flute. Flutes andpiccolos can be made of either wood, silver, nickelor gold plated. The instruments commonly foundin the orchestra are usually made of metal ratherthan wood. The fingering for both the flute andpiccolo is identical.
The alto flute or flute in G is larger than thestandard flute and is not used very often in theorchestra. The alto flute is what is called atransposing instrument. This means that the notessound a fourth higher than written. If for example,you see the written note C, the note actually playedand heard is an F which is four notes higher. Thereare also many different types of wooden flutes usedin world music.
Orchestral position
Famous works for flute:Peter & the Wolf (Bird) ProkovievSuite in A Minor TelemannOrchestral suite 2 J.S.BachConcerto in D Major MozartFamous works for piccolo:Overture to The ThievingMagpie Rossini
Famous flautists
James GalwayJeanne BaxtresserSebastian BellJohann QuantzJean-Pierre Rampal
Flute & Piccolo pitch range
The flute sounds as writtenand the piccolo sounds oneoctave higher.
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
THE CLARINET - Factsheet
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Orchestral position
Famous clarinetists
Acker BilkJack BrymerGervase de PayerEmma Johnson
B flat Clarinet pitch range
The clarinet developed from the olderinstrument called the chalumeau in the early1700’s by a German instrument maker calledJ.C.Denner. The clarinet had a separatemouthpiece and extra keys which meant thatit could play a wider range of notes. In the1840’s the Boehm system of keys which hadbeen developed for the flute were also addedto the clarinet.
The clarinet is a single reed instrument with apiece of cane or plastic shaped to fit to the mainpart of the mouthpiece. The clarinet generallyfound in the orchestra is a B flat or A clarinet.
Clarinets are what are called transposinginstruments. In music for a B flat clarinet awritten note C actually plays a B flat on theinstrument - one whole tone lower. In a clarinetin A if you see the note C the clarinet will soundan A which is two tones or a minor third lower.
The clarinet is often used in jazz bands andone of the most famous performers on theclarinet was Acker Bilk. The clarinet has seen arise in popularity in recent years and hasbecome much easier for young people to learnwith the development of the C clarinet. Thisinstrument is made of a lightweight plastic andenables players to start at an earlier age, as itis smaller and lighter.
The basset horn in F is a lower sounding clarinetthat is rarely found today but it was popularduring the Classical period. There are alsoclarinets in E flat and a bass clarinet in B flat.
Famous works for clarinet:Rhapsody in Blue GershwinConcerto in A Major MozartPeter & the Wolf (Cat) ProkovievQuintet for clarinet & strings BrahmsThe Miraculous Mandarin Bartok
Mouthpiece
Socket
Upper joint
Keys
Lower joint
Bell
A clarinetsingle reed -this fitsonto themouthpieceon theunderside.
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
THE OBOE - Factsheet
10
The oboe was originallydeveloped from the earlyreed instrument the shawm.It was the Hotteterre familywho worked for the court ofLouis XIV that developed theearliest known oboes. Thenineteenth century saw thedevelopment of a keymechanism and althoughthese can vary from maker tomaker they are fairlystandardised today.
The oboe is made in threesections and there are severaldifferent sizes used in theorchestra including the coranglais which is slightlylarger than the oboe.
The oboe is a double reedinstrument unlike theclarinet, which is a singlereed instrument. To make anoboe reed a length of cane issplit into three and the piecesare shaped, bent and tiedtightly to form a mouthpiece.
Orchestral position
Famous works for oboe:Peter & the Wolf (Duck) ProkovievConcertos AlbinoniThe Silken Ladder Overture Rossini
Famous works for cor anglais:New World Symphony Dvorak
Famous oboe players
Georges GilletRobert BloomLady Evelyn BarbirolliMyrtile Morel
Oboe pitch range
Reed
Upper joint
Keys
PlatesLower Joint
Bell
They vibrate when a playerblows air through the reedand sound is produced. InFrance the oboe is called thehautbois which literallymeans high wood and youwill sometimes see thiswritten in musical scores.
The oboe d’amore whichliterally means the oboe oflove was developed around1720 in Germany and islarger than the oboe. It waspopular during the Baroqueperiod and Bach used itextensively.
The oboe sounds as it iswritten, whereas the coranglais sounds a fifth lowerand the oboe d’amore a thirdlower than it is written.
Answer the following questions on the woodwind section. Use a notebook or the back ofthe paper to write on.
1. Which is the highest member of the woodwind section found in the orchestra?2. Which is the lowest instrument of the woodwind family commonly found in the
orchestra today?3. Which instruments would you find in a Romantic period orchestra in the woodwind
section that you would not find in a Baroque period orchestra?4. Is the oboe d’amore higher or lower in pitch than the orchestral oboe?5. Which instrument more often used in jazz is sometimes found in the modern orchestra?
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
THE TRUMPET - Factsheet
The modern trumpet developed from thenatural trumpet which was an instrument witha very limited range as it had no valves or keysand could only play high notes.
The natural trumpet was extremely difficult toplay and in the eighteenth century instrumentmakers began to try to find a solution to thisproblem. It wasn’t until the nineteenth centuryhowever that Stölzel and Blühmel produced thefirst valve trumpet. The addition of valves madethe trumpet both easier to play and increasedits range.
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Orchestral position
Mouthpiece Valves Finger hook Bell
Famous works for trumpet:Trumpet Concerto HaydnTrumpet Voluntary ClarkeBrandenburg Concerto No.2 BachThe Messiah (The trumpet shall sound)
Handel
Famous trumpeters
Miles DavisHakan HardenbergerWynton MarsalisClifford BrownLouis Armstrong
If you blow down a trumpet without a valvepressed down then the air can pass straightthrough the instrument. By pressing down oneor more valves the air passes through extrasections of tubing and different notes can beplayed. Most trumpets have three valves.
Like the clarinet the trumpet is a transposinginstrument and the modern B flat trumpet,which is most commonly found in theorchestra, sounds one tone lower than written.Using a mute, a cup or a wow-wow can varythe sound of a trumpet! These all fit into theflared bell and alter the tone of the instrument.
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
Bell
THE TROMBONE - Factsheet
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The trombone generally found in orchestrastoday is the slide tenor trombone although inthe twentieth century a three-valve trombonewas successfully developed. There are usuallythree or four trombones in a symphony orchestra.
As with other brass instruments the vibrationsof the performer’s lips produce and vary thesound. The slide trombone uses a slide to extendthe length of tubing. There are seven playingpositions, which combined with the playersbreath pressure change the pitch of the notes.
Orchestral position
Famous works for trombone:Ride of the Valkyries WagnerSymphony No.5 BeethovenWilliam Tell Overture RossiniRequiem (Tuba Mirum) MozartTannhäuser Overture Wagner
Famous trombone players
Simon HoggChristian LindbergBill WatrousDon Lusher
The trombone is developed from the earlierinstrument the sackbutt, which was popularduring the 1400’s and 1500’s. Originally usedmostly in church music, it wasn’t until thenineteenth century that the trombone becamea regular member of the orchestra.
There are several different sizes of trombonethe tenor, bass and tenor bass trombones.Unlike many brass instruments the tenortrombone which is the most popular inorchestral music is not a transposinginstrument, so its music sounds as written. Astrange fact is that if the same instrument isused in brass bands its music is written a ninthhigher than played and written in the trebleclef and not the tenor or bass clef. The tenortrombone usually uses the bass clef ortenor clef.
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
THE HORN - Factsheet
15
The horn has been found throughout historyand was originally used as a signal both whenhunting and in battle. The earliest horns weremade of animal horn but in the fourteenthcentury instrument makers began to use metalinstead. The orchestral or French horn wasdeveloped in the seventeenth century.
It was the addition of valves whichrevolutionised horn playing as previously
Orchestral position
Famous works for horn:Peter & the Wolf (Hunters) Prokoviev4 Horn Concertos MozartBrandenburg Concerto No.1 J.S.BachConcerto in D Major HaydnConcerto for 4 Horns Schumann
Famous horn players
Dennis BrainMichael ThompsonHermann BaumannAnthony Halstead
Valves
players had had to use a series of crooks tovary the length of tubing and so alter the rangeof notes. Some early players also used atechnique called hand stopping which involvedthe performer placing their hand in the bell ofthe instrument to alter the pitch of the notes.
There are two types of horn commonly foundtoday, the horn in F and the double horn in Bflat. The double horn in B flat can alternatebetween F and B flat by use of a valve,therefore living up to its name of double hornby being able to be played as either a B flat orF horn. The double horn is most commonlyfound in orchestras as it is more versatile.
When playing a horn the performer supportsthe instrument by placing their hand into thebell. By changing the hand position the playercan alter the pitch, mute the sound or producevarious other effects. A pear shaped mute canalso be inserted into the bell to change thesound.
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
THE TUBA - Factsheet
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The tuba is the largest member of the brassfamily commonly found in the orchestra. Fora large instrument it is surprisingly versatile.
It was invented in the 1830’s in Germanyalthough it was rarely found in orchestrasbefore 1850. The inventor was a bandmasternamed Wieprecht who patented his designwith an instrument maker called Moritz. Therehave been various sizes and shapes of tubaand there are three types used in orchestrastoday: the contrabass, E flat bass orbombardon and the F bass tuba.
The orchestral tuba usually plays in the bassclef. The word tuba actually comes from theLatin for trumpet which is a little confusing!
Wagner invented a tuba called the Wagnertuba to be used in his series of operas calledThe Ring Cycle. It is however more closelyrelated to the horn than the tuba.
Orchestral position
Famous works for tuba:Concerto for Tuba Vaughan WilliamsSymphonie Fantastique BerliozTragic Overture BrahmsPictures from an Exhibition Mussorgsky/Ravel
Famous tuba players
John FletcherArnold JacobsJohn GriffithsMark Nelson
Mouthpiece
Valves
Bell
Tubes
Tuba pitch range
The marching tuba is used in military bandsand rests on the player’s shoulder with alighter fibreglass bell pointing forwards.
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
THE BRASS SECTION - Factsheet
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Between 1600 and 1750 the brass section in aBaroque orchestra was quite limited oftenconsisting of only trumpets and horns. Itwasn’t until around 1850 during the Romanticperiod that improvements in design made theinstruments more reliable. This as well as newinstruments being invented led to the brasssection increasing in size dramatically.
In the Romantic period the brass section quiteoften included four horns, four trumpets, fourtrombones and one tuba.
Wagner sometimes used what is known as theWagner Tuba in his music. It is more like anorchestral horn than a tuba and is made intwo sizes - tenor and bass. It was developed toWagner’s specification and is still used in TheRing Cycle of operas along with a bass tuba.
Orchestral positions of the brass section
& Tubas
TrumpetsHorns
Trombones
Tuba
Trumpet
Trombone
Trombone pitch range
Trumpet pitch range Horn in F pitch range(written)
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
TUNED PERCUSSION - Factsheet
The main feature of tuned percussion is thatthey can play a melody rather than simplymake a noise or effect. The most commonly foundtuned percussion instruments found in the orchestraare the glockenspiel, xylophone, tubular bells,vibraphone, marimba and the celeste.
The orchestral xylophone has two rows ofwooden bars with a range of between 3 1/2and 4 octaves. The sound is made louder andclearer by resonating tubes which hangunderneath the instrument. The wooden barscan be struck with different kinds of beaters toproduce a different sound but performers mostoften use wooden beaters.
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Orchestral position
Marimba
Famous works for percussion:1812 Overture Tchaikovsky(Tubular Bells, Vibraphone & Wind Machine)
The marimba is very similar to the xylophonebut is deeper in pitch. Its name comes from aninstrument found in both Africa and SouthAmerica.
The glockenspiel has metal bars rather thanthe wooden bars found on the xylophone andmarimba. It also has a smaller range - typicallyaround 2 1/2 octaves. The glockenspiel isusually played with quite hard beaters so thatthe sound is bright and bell-like. A celeste is akind of keyboard glockenspiel in which themetal bars are hit by felt covered hammers.
The layout of the bars on all these instrumentsis very similar to the arrangement of the keyson the piano. However as the pitch of the notesbecomes higher the metal or wooden barsshorten in length and so the longer the barthe deeper the pitch.
The layout of the tubular bells is different tothat of the glockenspiel, xylophone andmarimba. A series of 18 brass or steel tubesare hung from a frame ranging from longer,lower pitched tubes to shorter tubes whichproduce a higher sound. To play the tubular
bells the tubesare struck with ahammer. Sometimesthe tubular bells havea mechanism that isoperated by the footto stop the sound.
Famous percussionists
Evelyn GlennieJames BladesDave HasselJimmy Holland
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
Sleigh bells
UNTUNED PERCUSSION - Factsheet
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Untuned percussion instruments cannot playa melody as they do not produce a pitched noteor sound. They are usually used to create effectsin a piece of music or to play a rhythm. Untunedpercussion instruments are usually hit orshaken.
The type of percussion instruments used in anorchestra can vary greatly depending on theperiod that the piece was written and the effectthat the composer is trying to create.
The cymbals are often used to create grandcrashes of lightning or a dramatic flourish ina piece. They can be clashed together orsometimes a single cymbal is hit with a beater.
The triangle has been used for around twohundred years in the orchestra. It is madefrom a steel bar which is bent into a triangleshape. The triangle is then suspended fromone corner so that when hit by a metal beaterit produces a bright clear sound.
Tambourines are made using a wooden ormetal hoop over which a skin is stretchedtightly. By adding metal discs around theoutside of the tambourine it makes a jinglysound. The tambourine originated in theMiddle East although it has been used inWestern music for many centuries.
Castanets originated in Spain and are oftenused in music with a Spanish flavour.By clicking together the two hollowed-outshaped pieces of wood a strong andsurprisingly loud rhythmic effect can beachieved. In the orchestra castanets are oftenattached to a wooden stick rather than clickedbetween the fingers.
Orchestral position
Famous works for percussion:Facade Walton(Wood Block)
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
TIMPANI / KETTLEDRUMS - Factsheet
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Timpani are large drums which can be tunedto different pitches. The main difficulty withtimpani drums is that it is difficult to changethe pitch of them quickly.
As with all drums the timpani drums have askin or membrane which is stretched tightlyacross a frame. Tightening or loosening thismembrane across the drumhead alters thepitch. By loosening the membrane the pitchwill lower. In early timpani this was done usinga series of keys which turned screws fitted
around the drum. This however was too timeconsuming and so in the nineteenth century asystem was developed where a handle turnedall the screw heads at once both evenly andmore quickly.
The best timpani drums today use a pedal toshift the tension between several set points ona tuning gauge. However, hand screw timpani
are still very popularand much cheaper!
Other drums thatare used in theorchestra are bassdrums and snaredrums, althoughneither of these aretuned percussioninstruments like thetimpani.
Orchestral position
Famous works for timpani:Symphonie Fantastique Berlioz(Thunderstorm) (Timpani)
Festival Overture (Timpani) SmetnaRuslan and Lyudmilla Glinka(Timpani)
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
ORCHESTRAL PERCUSSION - Factsheet
21
The percussion section of the orchestra variesenormously depending on which piece of musicis being performed and in which period it waswritten. Up until the Romantic period thepercussion section of the orchestra consistedonly of the timpani or kettledrums. It was inthe nineteenth century that composers reallybegan to explore the possibilities of percussioninstruments although in the eighteenth centurysome composers began to add cymbals andtriangles to pieces.
Percussion instruments fall into two types -tuned and untuned. Tuned percussioninstruments are capable of playing a tune ormelody whereas untuned percussion can onlyprovide effects or rhythmic ideas.
Here are some tuned percussion instruments:Orchestral Xylophone CelesteOrchestral Glockenspiel MarimbaTubular Bells Timpani Drums(Timpani can be tuned to different notes)
Instruments of the OrchestraName: _______________________
ORCHESTRAL PERCUSSION - Worksheet
21
Here is a diagram of the layout of anorchestra. Shade in where thepercussion section would sit.
Identify the following instruments.
TUNED UNTUNED
1.
2.
4.
3.
5.
Below are some tuned and untuned percussion instruments. Write the names of the instrumentsin the box they belong to.Xylophone Cow Bells Celeste GongsGlockenspiel Claves Sleigh Bells MarimbaTubular Bells Cymbals Timpani Drums Wood BlocksTriangles Castanets Maracas Bass Drum