What is an orchestra? The orchestra is made of four families of
instruments: Strings Brass Woodwinds Percussion
Slide 4
string The string section has been a major part of the
orchestra for 200 years. The sound is created by the vibration of
strings. There are two types of stringed instruments, bowed and
plucked. Bowed strings are played with a bow, they are the violin,
viola, cello and bass. Plucked strings include the harp, guitar,
lute, mandolin, banjo, and others.
Slide 5
The strings were originally made out of cat gut, just as tennis
racket strings used to be made.
Slide 6
The larger the stringed instrument the lower the sound. Thats
the case with the String bass. It is sometimes called the double
bass or stand-up bass. Large orchestras have 8 to 10 basses.
Slide 7
The cello is the second largest of the string section. Of all
the strings, the rich, singing sound of the cello make it sound the
most like a human voice. Some people believe it is the most
expressive instrument in the orchestra.
Slide 8
The violin plays an extremely important part in the orchestra,
but is the smallest of the string family. It plays the main melody
in most orchestral music.
Slide 9
The Viola is bigger than the violin, though it looks the same.
Its sound is warm, deep and powerful. It is more difficult to play,
due to violists having to stretch their fingers further between
notes.
Slide 10
The plucked strings include the harp, guitar, lute, mandolin
and banjo. The strings are plucked to make sweet, delicate music
that is softer than most other instruments.
Slide 11
The harpsichord also has strings that are plucked. It looks
similar to a piano. The piano has strings that are actually hit by
small mallets instead of plucked, so it is considered a percussion
instrument.
Slide 12
All brass instruments are made of long pieces of coiled tubes
of metal. Their sound comes from the vibration of air and of the
vibration of the musician's lips as they make a buzzing noise. The
sound coming out of a brass instrument can be changed when the
player changes his lip tension.
Slide 13
Members of the brass section include: French horn Tuba Trumpet
Trombone
Slide 14
French horns are the leaders of the brass section in the
orchestra. They don't have valves. Instead they have keys.
Slide 15
Tubas are the largest brass instruments. The first tuba was
made in Germany by a composer named Richard Wagner.
Slide 16
The trumpet also belongs to the Brass family. Long ago trumpets
were used during battles. The soldiers would listen for their
special trumpet calls to know what to do on the battlefield. Kings
like trumpets to play at their royal celebrations because they
sound so important and special.
Slide 17
The trombone is another member of the brass family. You play
the trombone by sliding tubing back and forth to make the tube
longer or shorter. This changes the sound.
Slide 18
A woodwind is an instrument that you blow into or over. The
woodwinds include flutes, oboes, clarinets, bassoons, and
saxophones. The sound is created by the vibration of air and the
reed that the musician attaches to the mouthpiece. They are called
woodwinds because they used to be made of wood, though saxophones
are included because they use a reed.
Slide 19
A Reed is a thin piece of cane, which is attached to the
mouthpiece of a woodwind instrument to produce sound by vibrating
when the player blows into the instrument. There are two types of
reeds: Single and Double
Slide 20
The clarinet is the most important woodwind in the orchestra.
It has a very wide range. A single reed is used on this instrument.
It has 18 holes, six of which are covered by fingers and the
remainder by keys.
Slide 21
The highest woodwind is the flute. Opening and closing holes in
the body of the instrument controls the pitch of the tones. This
woodwind does not need a reed. The vibration is created by the air
blowing over the mouthpiece.
Slide 22
Flutes were once made of wood. Today, they can be made of all
types of metal, including silver, gold or platinum, or a
combination. They are a descendant from another woodwind which does
not need a reed called a recorder.
Slide 23
The oboe is the soprano of the double-reeded woodwinds. The
sound is produced by forcing a column of air and the double reed to
vibrate.
Slide 24
The bassoon is the lowest and largest of the woodwinds. This
sound is also produced by forcing a column of air and a double reed
to vibrate.
Slide 25
The saxophone is considered a woodwind because even though it
is made of brass, it is played in a very similar way to the
clarinet and uses a single reed. It is the only woodwind that has
never been made of wood. It is made of a long, bent tube with holes
in it, which are covered by pads called keys. The saxophone has
three parts: the body, the neck and the mouthpiece.
Slide 26
The percussion section of the orchestra has many different
instruments in it. It is usually in the back of the orchestra. It
is made up of instruments that use a mallet, or other device, to
strike, shake or rattle to produce the sound.
Slide 27
The Tympani is a definite pitched drum in the percussion
family. It can be tuned to many different pitches. These drums are
often called Kettle drums.
Slide 28
Another is the snare drum which comes is different types and
sizes. They have an upper head which is played by striking and an
underneath head which has little strips of gut or metal stretched
across it. These strips vibrate to make a rattling sound.
Slide 29
Drums are probably the oldest type of percussion instrument.
People in the Middle East used to put drums on either side of their
camels. The drummer sat on top and played them.
Slide 30
These percussion instruments are smaller, hand held
instruments. Even though they are very different from other
percussion instruments and even from each other, you still play
them by hitting, shaking or scraping. Can you name them?
Slide 31
The xylophone and glockenspiel are tuned percussion
instruments. They hold their tune better that any of the other
percussion instruments. The marimba is a larger, deeper, more
mellow-sounding type of xylophone.
Slide 32
Can you name at least two instruments from each family of the
orchestra? Can you recognize the distinct sound of Each
family?