THE BAND

there are actually three type of clarinets: bflat, soprano, and bass. (the one pictured is a bflat).it has a single reed on a mouthpiece to produce a sound. It has a range in pitches, but usually is played at a lower pitch to balance the woodwind section. it is also played in jazz bands and is a fa-vorite solo instrument.

the flute is a soprano instrument. unlike other woodwind instruments it has no reed, only a small hole in the mouth piece to blow over to make a sound. it is often used as a solo instruments in delicate pieces.

there are also four types of saxophones: soprano, alto (pictured here), tenor, and baritone. it is a single reed instrument. the saxophone is a mid-range instrument. it is very much a jazz instrument and is the favorite for that genre of music.

CLARINET

FLUTE

SAXOPHONE

WOODWINDS

OBOE

the oboe is a double reed instrument, meaning it has two pieces of cane tied together with a small opening and they vibrate against each other to make the sound. it is a soprano instrument. it is used more often in classi-cal orchestra pieces, but every once in a while it will shine through in band arrangements. usually duetting with a flute or clarinet. the oboe has the most unique sound, being only one of two double reed instruments.

BASSOON

the bassoon is also a double reed instrument. it is a bass pitched instrument. it typically doesn’t get many solo parts and usually plays the same part with the low brass instruments. but it has a wonderfully unique sound that cannot be replicated by anything else.

BRASS

TRUMPET

FRENCH HORN

the trumpet is a soprano brass instrument and it can reach the highest pitches of the brass family. it is used in marches and solos quite a bit because of its bright and peppy sound. it can be heard in jazz music as a prominent instru-ment as well. it is played using three valves only, and like all brass instruments the pitch-es are controlled with the players lips and air speed.

the french horn in a mid range instru-ment, comparable to the alto saxo-phone. it has a rich and mellow sound that can soar above a band if it needs. the way it is played is special to this in-strument only, the payer sticks his hand carefully inside the bell as he plays, to get an even richer tone out of it.

TROMBONE

BARITONE

the trombone is a low brass instrument. it has a low range. unlike other brass instru-ments it uses a slide instead of valves to produce its pitches. this means that it can produce a variety of unique sounds and pitch-es that other instruments can’t.

the baritone is also part of the low brass family. it has a cousin named the euphonium, which has four valves instead of the three that baritones have. the baritone has a lovely more mellow voice of the low brass, so it the favorite for solos.

TUBA

the tuba is the powerhouse of the band. it has the lowest pitches. not a solo instrument, the tuba is usually used to keep time in pieces so it ends up playing a lot of quarter notes. it also is the instrument that everyone else has to listen back to and tune against.

Kathleen Fisher