Percussion Instruments Comparison Essay

The trumpet is a musical instrument classified under the brass family of instruments. Its history dates back to at least the 15th century when people used horns, bones and wood to magnify their voices. Today’s trumpet however, is made of brass that can be lacquered with silver, nickel, gold, and titanium. It possesses seven essential features: a mouthpiece, mouthpiece receiver, bell, valves, leadpipe, tuning slides, and water key. The trumpet is considered the smallest member of its family, yet it plays the highest pitches with a bright and vibrant sound depending on its register. There are two to four trumpets in the orchestra playing both harmony and melody, and supporting the rhythm.

Instruments used to portray these various styles of music were often drums of all shapes and sizes, rattles, and often tambourines or bells with other percussion instruments. The drums were constructed by using such materials as clay, iron, wood or aluminum with heads of buckskin, chamois, or rubber. These drums were typically played with a single drumstick, holding a steady pattern of four beats. Also, in addition to these instruments there were wind instruments.

Although Front ensemble and drumline produce different sounds and imagery, both are a part of an amazing sport called marching band.Front ensemble and drumline are both in the percussion family.

During these potlatches the events is traditionally marked by ceremonial dances and also by songs. The songs get an extra effect by providing whistles, rattles, and specific vocal utterances. Whistles are associated with the spirits. A main element used by the Northwest coast is the beat of a drum. They are known to play individual hand drums with one another instead of playing a one giant drum like in the Great

During the Old Kingdom, harps were triangular and had eight to twelve strings. Over time these instruments improved the sound by adding more strings and using various shapes and sizes. Percussion instruments, like drums, rattles, tambourines, and bells, were sometimes associated with Egyptian gods like Sekhmet and Bes. The sistrum and the menat are two percussion instruments that were dedicated to Hathor, the goddess of banquets and music making. However, these instruments were sometimes used to worship other gods at different periods of time. Music in Egypt is rather vague because of a lack of evidence but there is enough to suggest the use of the instruments for worship and how they were used to represent different Egyptian gods.

that acts as a bass drum and normally comes in three different sizes that vary in pitch. These instruments are the heart of the entire ensemble. The tambourine is also a membranophone

Drums – the drums help keep the beat of the song and to make beat 2 and 4 emphasised.

This can be seen especially with the Inca wind instruments. Having grown in popularity, instruments like the Kena flute are actively played especially in soundtracks of nature programs. The modernized Kena is now longer in length and no longer made of llama bones. It is now made from wood, which has altered the sound of the instrument. Luckily the sound it produces still sounds like wild life from the Andes (Quena or Kena Flute

Brass instruments are made of brass or some other metal and make sound when air is blown inside, creating a bold sound. Percussion instruments make sounds when they are struck, shaken, rubbed, or scratched, creating an abrupt/confident.

Percussion has evolved throughout its history into what it is today. Melodic instruments have several origins, the two main origins being Eastern Asia and Africa. In each culture their first intended use was for religion and war. Melodic percussion instruments, like most instruments, are now used for less serious events than their original uses. Rather than being linked to war and religion, a majority of melodic percussion is used for entertainment. Along with the change of melodic percussion’s contributions in war and religion, comes the advancement melodic percussion has made for entertainment. Today they are played in most places around the world in ensembles or even on streets during street performances. Although the instruments belonging to melodic percussion can be played and enjoyed on their own, the main purpose of a melodic percussion instrument now usually lies

The polyphonic texture can be seen through the music where is has three different layers which are produced by the different intrsuments. The polyphonic texture is a texture that is simultaneously performed by two or more melodic lines, or players, that have relatively equal interest. The polyphonic texture is not layers that are accompanied by chords, which would be called as the homophonic texture. The music for the Chinese Lion Dance consists of only percussion instruments such as the Gu (which is known as the drum), the Luo (known as the Gong) and the Bo (which is known as the cymbal). These are the instruments that are played together during the performance of the Chinese Lion

The Akan drum was built in West Africa and was assumed to be made sometime around the early 18th century. The drum is constructed from wood, that the Akan people carved, with what is assumed to be deerskin covering the top of the drum, which would be replaced with new deerskin from North America.

The most important instrument in Caribbean music is the drum. As well as being the foundation of African music, drums are inexpensive, simple and can be handmade with easily obtainable materials. Almost all Caribbean music acquires a distinct beat created by the drums. Most drums are some version of the bongo or the larger congo, a smooth wooden drum that is played with the hands. Tassa drums are conical hand drums made of clay and goatskin. Timbales are a pair of

The cymbal, a common percussion instrument, varies both in style and use simply by how it is constructed and the materials used to construct it. While the common person would easily mistake a cymbal to be a very simplistic and elementary instrument of the percussion family, a cymbal’s size, weight, and even indention pattern can impact not only the type of cymbal, but also the sound it creates. Throughout the cymbal’s existence, talented craftsmen have perfected the art of cymbal making. Materials such as bronze, nickel silver, and brass are most commonly used to manufacture

The piano and organ each have a unique purpose and sound. The piano is commonly used as a lead instrument while the organ provides background texture. When an individual note is played on the piano, a single tone is heard by the listener. However, when a single note is played on the organ, the listener can hear a variety of sounds