Wind instruments

Wind instruments include any musical instrument that produces sound by having air blown into it. This category of instruments typically is divided into two broad groups: woodwind instruments, such as flutes and saxophones, and brass instruments, which include horns and trumpets. These categorizations initially were based on the type of materials used to construct the instrument. Woodwinds were composed of wood, while brass instruments were made of brass. However, this method of classification is considered relatively arbitrary, as the materials used in their respective constructions have changed over time. Additionally, it disregards the shared characteristics of many instruments. This method of categorization is generally only used in the West. Nevertheless, for the purposes of orchestras, wind instruments continue to be divided into woodwinds and brasses.

Brief History

Wind instruments arose independently as musical devices in most cultures around the world. The first wind instruments were very primitive. Although the first musical instruments to be developed were likely the human voice and percussion instruments, the oldest known instruments are a pair of flutes found in a cave in Geisenklösterle, Germany, made from vulture bones and mammoth ivory. Carbon dating has suggested that these flutes are between forty-two and forty-three thousand years old, and they may have been used for entertainment and religious rituals. Scientists have speculated that the development of musical instruments like the flute could have been part of a pattern of behaviors that gave early human an advantage over their Neanderthal rivals. Activities involving music may have enabled ancient humans to form societal bonds that propelled them to create communities. The formation of communities allowed them to outcompete the Neanderthals for resources. In contrast, no musical instruments made by Neanderthals have been found.

Other examples of early wind instruments are conch shells that were repurposed as horns, one-note whistles, and panpipes. The earliest known trumpets may be two examples made approximately 2,400 years ago—one made of silver, the other of bronze—that were found in Egyptian king Tutankhamun's tomb. Unlike contemporary trumpets, these instruments, which were shaped like modern party horns, were limited in their sound. Another ancient instrument is the Jewish shofar, which traditionally was made from a ram's horn. In the early civilizations of China, Egypt, and Samaria, musicians gradually developed harmonics, which allowed them to play a variety of notes by changing their wavelengths. Instrument makers created finger holes, reeds, and experimented with materials to develop greater harmonic range.

Most wind instruments have recent origins. Bagpipes date from the thirteenth century, when they first appeared in the British Islands. Recorders are thought to have originated in fourteenth-century Germany and the Netherlands. In the medieval era, troubadours and minstrels used a variety of woodwind instruments in their performances. Among their musical tools were the flute, shawm (a predecessor to the oboe), sackbut (a medieval trombone), and bagpipes. Beginning in the seventeenth century, modern incarnations of traditional woodwind instruments—such as oboes, flutes, and bassoons—began appearing throughout Europe. Over time, specialized forms of these instruments similar to those used in modern orchestras began to appear. For instance, the piccolo, alto and bass flutes, alto and bass clarinets, and the contra bassoon date from eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Europe.

Overview

Instruments can be divided into three or four families—string instruments, percussion instruments, and wind instruments; or strings, percussion, brasses, and woodwinds. A string instrument is any musical instrument that relies on the vibration from a series of strings. String instruments include violins and guitars. Percussion instruments are defined as instruments that produce sound through the impact of two separate elements. This category includes drums, cymbals, and triangles.

Despite their names, woodwinds and brasses may be made from a variety of materials. While many woodwinds are still made from wood, they can also be plastic, metal, ivory, glass, or any combination of these materials. Like woodwinds, brass instruments are not exclusively made of brass. They may be made from ivory, horn, shells, wood, or metals such as silver and copper. As a result, most organologists do not use material or even shape as a means of separating the various categories of wind instruments. Rather, brass instruments are defined as any instrument in which sound is produced by the combination of human lips and a tubular instrument body. Examples of brass instruments include trumpets, horns, cornets, French horns, tubas, South African vuvuzelas, and Australian Aboriginal didgeridoos. Woodwinds, on the other hand, includes all other instruments powered by the release of air into the instrument.

Woodwinds may be further divided into flute-like instruments and reed instruments. A reed is a small piece of material (generally made from dried cane) placed into an instrument that vibrates when it is under pressure from blown air. Instruments in the flute family do not use reeds. These include pan flutes, fifes, recorders, and tin whistles.

Reed instruments may use one or two reeds. Saxophones and clarinets require a single reed. In these instruments, a reed is placed onto the mouthpiece. In double-reed woodwinds, the two pieces of material in the reed are folded end to end and vibrate against each other to create a more nasal sound. Examples of double-reed instruments include the oboe, English horn, bagpipes, and bassoon. Musicians play woodwind instruments by blowing air through a mouthpiece and controlling the resulting sound by opening or closing the holes in various sequences. The shape and material of the instrument affects the wavelengths of the notes, creating different sounds. Many woodwinds tend to be cylindrical in shape (or have an element sharing this shape, such as with bagpipes) with a mouthpiece at the top of one end, a series of holes stretching across the length of the instrument, and a broad opening at the end. In instruments outside the flute family, the holes are covered by a series of keys.

Brass instruments typically have a funnel-shaped mouthpiece into which the musician blows. Often, brass instruments are shaped as long pipes (which may be bent or twisted) that end in bell-shaped openings. To change the pitch of notes, the musician engages a series of keys, slides, or valves. The sound of brass instruments varies depending of the length of the tubing—the longer the tubing, the lower the sound. Musicians control the notes through the vibration and shape of their lips.

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