Instruments of the ORCHESTRA
The modern symphony orchestra is made up of a variety of different and amazing instruments! Even though they all look different and sound different, the instruments of the orchestra can be grouped into 4 main families, based on how they create their sound: the String family, the Woodwind family, the Brass Family, and the Percussion family.
The String Family
The string family of the orchestra makes up the majority of the musicians on stage, and is comprised of 5 instruments:
1.) the Violin, 2.) the Viola, 3.) the Cello, 4.) the Double Bass, and 5.) the Harp.
The four main instruments of this family (violin, viola, cello, and double bass) are made out of carved wood, and strung with 4 metal strings. They have bodies that are hollow, and feature elegantly carved sound holes on their fronts that project their beautiful, resonant sound. (The harp is a little different, but we’ll talk about that in a minute…) String instruments can produce their sound in one of two main ways ways:
They can pluck the strings with their fingers (a technique which is called “pizzicato”), which produces a short, clear sound;
Or, they can draw a wooden bow strung with horse tail hairs across the strings (which is called “arco”), which produces a warm and continuous sound.
String players can also use wooden part of their bows to hit the strings, which produces a thin, metallic sound (called “col legno”), as well as different types of bow strokes, with each creating a different and unique sound effect.
Violin
The smallest and highest-pitched member of the string family, and also the largest section of the orchestra - there can be up to 30 violins playing in the biggest orchestra pieces! But usually there are 16-25 violins in an orchestra.
Viola
The second highest member of the string family, it looks like a slightly larger violin, and has a deeper and darker sound. There are usually 8-10 violas in an orchestra.
Cello
The second lowest member of the string family, and it’s so much bigger than violin and viola that it sits on a floor peg between the players legs. There are typically 6-10 cellos in an orchestra.
Double Bass
The biggest and lowest member of the string family, the bass is double the size of the cello, and also sits on the ground in front of the player. There are 5-8 basses in a typical orchestra.
To see how a violin is made, check out the short video below. Violas, cellos, and basses are made in much the same way, just on a larger scale.
Harp
The harp is the special member of the string family: it is also made of wood, but inside its body there is a complex metal mechanism, operated by 7 foot pedals that the harpist can use to change the tuning of the 47 different strings. Harp players don’t use bows either; they play entirely by plucking, and the harp’s range spans from the lowest notes of the double bass to the highest notes of the violin.
Fun Fact: A person who makes wooden string instruments is called a “Luthier”, and a person who makes bows is called a “Archetier”.
The Woodwind Family:
The Woodwind family is comprised of 4 main instruments: 1.) the Flute, 2.) the Oboe, 3.) the Clarinet, and 4.) the Bassoon.
The woodwind family (so named because it’s members are made out of various types of wood, except for the flute) is comprised of instruments that require blowing air into to for sound production. All four of these instruments consist of a single, long tube with holes drilled along their length. To change the note being played, the musician will either cover or uncover a specific pattern of holes. Some of these holes are covered just with the tip of the players fingers, while others that are too far away from the player’s hands are covered using a mechanism made of keys, rods and pads.
All of these instruments, with the exception of the Flute, are “Reed” instruments; in other words, the air is blown through a mouthpiece with a thin wooden reed attached to it, which produces the vibrations that create the instrument’s sound. By contrast, a flute player creates their sound by blowing air across an open hole in the head joint (much like blowing across a Coke bottle and making it whistle).
Doubling Up
It is common for several woodwind players in the orchestra to “double” on a piece of music, which means playing two instruments during a piece. This additional instrument will always be a member of their main instrument’s family. For flute players, this can mean also playing the Piccolo; oboe players might have to play the English Horn; clarinet players might have to play either the E-flat Clarinet or the Bass Clarinet; and bassoon players might play the Contrabassoon. In every orchestra, one of the woodwind players in each section, usually the 3rd chair player, will be responsible for playing the doubling instrument part. It just depends on the piece, and what instruments the composer has written to use.
Altogether then, there are 9 woodwind instruments we’ll look at that feature prominently as a part of the orchestra. This is not including a number of other woodwinds that are used in some orchestral music but are not a standard part of the woodwind section (these include the Alto Flute, Oboe d’amore, Bass Oboe, Heckelphone, Alto Clarinet, Contrabass Clarinet, and the members of the Saxophone family).
Flute
The bigger cousin of the piccolo at 26 inches long, the flute was once commonly made out of wood (hence its inclusion in the woodwind family). The metal flute was invented in 1847, and has since become the standard instrument used in orchestras. Two flute players (and a 3rd usually on piccolo) are standard in the modern orchestra.
oboe
The oboe (and its bigger brother the English Horn) are both members of the “double reed” sub-family of woodwinds. Instead of one reed attached to a mouthpiece, the oboe has two small reeds attached together, which the player blows through to create their sound. There are two oboes in the orchestra.
English horn
Similar to the oboe, the English Horn (not actually a horn despite the name) also utilizes a double reed. Although it is in the same family as the oboe, the English horn is slightly bigger and longer, and consequently has a lower and darker sound. There is usually only only English horn in the orchestra.
Clarinet
The clarinet uses a single reed, mounted on a mouthpiece. It is unique for the three distinct parts and colors of its range, each with their own unique name (the “Chalumeau” for the lowest; the “Clarion” for the middle; and the “Altissimo” register). It is standard for two clarinets to be in the orchestra.
Bass clarinet
The bass clarinet is a much larger member of the clarinet family, measuring in at around 40 inches in length. It is typically played while sitting, and combines a curved metal bell and neck to make it compact enough to play. There will usually only be one bass clarinet in the orchestra, but some larger pieces will require two.
Bassoon
A larger relative of the oboe, the bassoon is also a double reed instrument. It is much larger than the other woodwind instruments at 8 feet of total length; the tube is bent once at the bottom of the instrument, resulting in two parallel tubes that makes it easier to hold and play. It is standard for two bassoons to be in the orchestra (but there can be as many as 4 on larger pieces)
Brass Family
There are 4 members of the Brass family: 1.) the Horn, 2.) the Trumpet, 3.) the Trombone, and 4.) the Tuba
The brass family gets its name from the soft metal alloy of copper and zinc that they are made from. This type of metal is soft enough that it can be molded and shaped into the intricate curves and tubes that give these instruments their distinctive shapes, but hard enough that they hold their shape, and give these instruments a clear and loud sound (the brass is by far the LOUDEST section of the orchestra!)
To create their sound, brass players put their lips together tightly and creating a buzzing type of sound while blowing into their mouthpiece, and it’s these vibrations that create their tone. To change their notes, brass players have two options: they can change the pitch of their buzz to move up or down to a different “partial,” which is a certain resonant frequency of a length of pipe, or there are two mechanisms they can use:
-for the horn, trumpet, and tuba, they have “valves,” which are pistons or cylinders that move up and down or rotate to redirect the air through different sets of pipes, changing the pitch, or:
-for the trombone, they have an adjustable slide, which they can extend or retract to change the length (and relative pitch) of their instrument
For much of their history, brass instruments either had a fixed length of tubing or the adjustable slide: valves are a relatively recent invention, first appearing around 1838.
Trumpet
The trumpet is the smallest and highest pitched member of the brass family. Because it can be very loud, the trumpet was originally used as a signaling device before joining the orchestra. Using certain patterns of notes and rhythms, the player could announce anything from battlefield directions to the arrival of a member of Nobility. There are usually 2 - 4 trumpets in the orchestra.
Horn
The horn, commonly referred to as the French horn, is the second highest pitched brass instrument in the orchestra. It is composed of 18 feet of brass tubing coiled together with 4 valves. Like the trumpet, horns were originally used as signaling instruments, most commonly used for hunting. There are typically 4 horns in the orchestra but some pieces can have as many as 9. (“The Alpine Symphony” by Richard Strauss is an extreme exception: he uses 8 on-stage horns and 12 off-stage horns!)
Trombone
The trombone is the second lowest pitched brass instrument in the orchestra. It is the only brass instrument that primarily utilizes a slide to change pitches. It was originally used to double the choir parts in church music (older trombones are much smaller, and as such much softer, so they didn’t cover up the singers). There are usually 3 trombones in an orchestra: 2 tenor trombones, and 1 bass trombone.
Tuba
The tuba is the largest and lowest pitched instrument in the brass family at 16 feet of tubing (like the Contrabassoon). There is usually only one tuba player in the orchestra, but some pieces occasionally require two, or the use of the tuba and its smaller relative the euphonium.
Percussion Family
The Percussion family is the biggest and most diverse section of the orchestra, and is divided into 2 subcategories:
1.) Pitched Percussion, and 2.) Unpitched/Indeterminant Percussion and Sound Effect Instruments
The percussion family is so named because the player creates sound by striking the instruments. This can be done either with the player’s hands, with a variety of sticks, mallets, or beaters. The first group we’ll look at, the pitched percussion, are instruments that play specific pitches, like the other instruments of the orchestra.
Pitched Percussion
Timpani
The timpani (also known as “Kettledrums”) are a type of drum with an adjustable membrane called a “head,” which is stretched over a large copper bowl. Using a foot pedal mechanism that tightens or loosens the head of the drum, the timpanist can change the tuning of each drum to suit the music being played. Depending on the specific piece of music, a timpanist will use between 2 and 5 drums of various sizes.
Chimes
Also knows as “tubular bells,” these are another type of keyboard percussion, but instead of tuned bars, the chimes are tuned metal tubes which sound like church bells. They are suspended from a metal rack, and are hit with a special mallet that resembles a hammer.
Unpitched Percussion
In contrast to the pitched percussion, unpitched percussion instruments create sounds rather than defined pitches. The smaller the instrument, the higher the sound, and the bigger the instrument, the lower the sound.
Triangle
The descriptively-named Triangle is a resonant piece of metal bent into a triangular shape, and is played with a small metal rod called a “beater.” They can be of just about any size, and they can be made to produce a single clear tone or a collection of contrasting tones.
Cymbals
Cymbals are a thin metal plate that when struck produce a loud, metallic sound. 2 cymbals can be held and crashed together (like in the picture), or a single cymbal can be suspended from a hanger or mounted on a stand and played with a variety of sticks or mallets. Different sizes and thicknesses of cymbals will produce different tones.
Snare Drum
The snare drum is comprised of a wooden or metal tube called a “shell” that is covered on both ends with a head. A set of wire snares is tightly strung across the bottom head of the drum, and when the top head is struck by the player, the vibrations cause the snares to vibrate against the bottom head, creating that characteristic buzzy sound.
Bass Drum
The bass drum has a large wooden shell that is covered with two heads, and can range in diameter from 28 inches to 40 inches. Its large size is used to produce low rumbling tones that emphasize the rhythm of the music. The bass drum is technically the loudest instrument in the orchestra: when being played full out, some bass drums hits have been measured at 120 decibels (that’s the same volume as a close-up
thunder clap).
Tam-Tams & Gongs
Like the cymbals, these are plates of metal that have been hammered to a specific thickness that allows them to resonate. Gongs and Tam-Tams have a different tone depending on how hard and how quickly they are struck, and they come in a variety of shapes and sizes from small to very large.
Keyboard Instruments
There are 4 main keyboard instruments that are used by the orchestra:
1.) the Piano; 2.) the Celeste; 3.) the Harpsichord; and 4.) the Pipe Organ
Keyboard instruments are all operated from a console the player sits at which is made of white and black keys, arranged in a specific pattern to help the play keep track of which notes they’re playing. These instruments are peculiar, in that they are as much a complicated machine as a musical instrument, and they don’t necessarily fit into the families you’d expect them to.
Piano
Perhaps one of the most well-know and commonly played instruments, the piano covers the full spectrum of pitch that humans are able to hear. It is also, surprisingly, a member of both the string and percussion families: though the piano is full of tuned metal strings, it produces sound by striking these strings with a felt hammer that is operated by the keyboard. The piano can function either as a solo instrument, or as a part of the orchestra.