Arts
What are the different types of musical instruments?
Quick answer
Musical instruments make sound in different ways: by plucking or bowing strings, blowing air, or hitting. In an orchestra they are grouped as strings, woodwind, brass and percussion.
In one sentence
A musical instrument is a tool that makes musical sounds by making something vibrate.
Explained
Every musical sound is a vibration. The way you make something vibrate gives the main instrument families. See sound.
guitar
drum
xylophone
- Strings vibrate when plucked, strummed or rubbed with a bow. Examples: violin, viola, cello, double bass, harp and guitar. A shorter or tighter string gives a higher note, which is why a violin sounds higher than a double bass.
- Woodwind instruments are played by blowing across a hole or against a thin reed. Examples: flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon and saxophone. Pressing keys covers holes to change the note. Many are no longer made of wood.
- Brass instruments are metal tubes you blow into while buzzing your lips: trumpet, trombone, French horn and tuba. Longer tubing gives a lower note.
- Percussion instruments are hit, shaken or scraped. Some play tunes, like the xylophone and glockenspiel. Others keep rhythm, like drums, tambourines and triangles.
- Keyboard instruments, like the piano, have keys that make hammers hit strings. The organ and synthesiser are keyboards that work in other ways.
An orchestra combines all these families. Around the world, many other instruments are used: the djembe drum and the kora (a harp-lute) from West Africa, the sitar from India, the didgeridoo from Australia, the guzheng from China and pan pipes from the Andes. Electronic instruments and computers can make or change sounds too.
Players change pitch (high or low) and volume (loud or soft), and they read written symbols; see musical notes. Keeping time together depends on rhythm and beat.
Examples
| Family | How the sound is made | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Strings | plucking or bowing | violin, guitar, harp |
| Woodwind | blowing across or into | flute, clarinet |
| Brass | buzzing lips | trumpet, tuba |
| Percussion | hitting or shaking | drum, xylophone |
| Keyboard | pressing keys | piano, organ |
Common mistakes
- "Saxophone is brass." It is woodwind, because it uses a reed.
- "Longer means higher." Longer strings and tubes usually make lower notes.
- "Piano is only a percussion instrument." It is often placed in its own keyboard group.
Quick quiz
Musical instruments
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Question 1 of 4
Which family does a violin belong to?
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Related topics
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