Callum Halls

9 December 2015

The Principles of Musical

Instruments
In the world of music, there are many
different types of musical instruments. Each has
its own specifications and varieties. There are
three main families of instruments, which are
wind, string and percussion. Wind instruments
consist of those instruments that you blow in to,
which vibrates air within the instrument itself.
Stringed instruments produce sound via the
vibrations of the strings and lastly a percussion
instrument produces sound when it is hit or
struck.
Within a wind instrument, you find a reed throughout all types except for the flute. The
reed within the instruments vibrate and create a rippling effect which vibrates the air and
pushes it through the instrument. For example, on a clarinet, if you cover up holes on the
vibrating column, it means the vibrating air has to find the next available hole to escape. If
you cover all holes, the air will have further to travel which will resonate more producing a
lower note. Even if you cover up all the holes and left the one closest to the reed open, the
resonating air would escape through the quickest route and the resulting pitch would be high.
For a stringed instrument, there are strings made out of metallic substances which
vibrate when a bow, usually made out of horsehair, rubs against them. The vibrations of
these sound waves travel into the bridge, into the top plate. Inside the violin, there is a sound
post between the bridge foot and the back. This transmits vibrations back and forth. There is
also a bass bar running the length of the top under the other bridge food, transmitting the
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vibrations in the top. This then vibrates together and creates the sound which leaves through
the f holes in the violin. This is how you hear sounds from a violin.
Lastly, with a percussion instrument, for example, a timpani, sound is produced by
striking one surface with a material. Usually, with a timpani, they are struck with a special
type of drum stick, usually known as a timpani mallet. The timpani head, or the part you hit,
is usually made out of a drumhead, which is pulled across a copper bowl.
Most wind instruments are played by the musician blowing air into it which vibrates a
reed, in turn vibrating the air within the instrument. Where the air escapes the instrument
defines the note which is produced. The further the air has to resonate, the lower the note
heard. With a trumpet, when valves are compressed mean that the air is redirected through
the pipes, which means that the air has to resonate for longer producing a lower note.
For a percussion instrument, such as a snare
drum, the sound is produced by vibrations
from being struck with, in this case, drum
sticks. All percussion instruments need a
source of energy for a sound to be produced,
whether this is striking it with a hand, stick or
shaking the instrument.
For a stringed instrument, such as a cello,
there are two different ways that they can be
played. The usual is to use a bow and drag it across the strings, which vibrate the strings and
produce a sound. The other way that a cello can be played, is to pluck, using your finger to
pull and let go of a string which produces a less sustained note sound.
The attributes of an instrument differ between instruments, even within the same
families. For example, the envelope differences between a piano and a guitar are very different
which is why if you played an A on the piano, you would be able to tell the difference
between that and playing an A on a guitar. This is because the envelopes are different. You
also have the vibrations coming from the hammer hitting against the piano strings whereas on
a guitar, when you pluck, you do not have that follow on vibration like you do on the piano
hammer.
You can also differentiate between different instruments from their harmonic content.

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Harmonics essentially create the timbre

as well as the tone of any sound and relevant
sound wave. The overall sound that you hear is
due to the harmonics as well as the
fundamental ( the musical note you perceive )
note. This, combined with the envelope, brings
you the sound you want to hear. The
fundamental note is the one you can hear
overall. With synthesisers, you can change by
adding or removing different harmonics to get
the sound you require.

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