Western and Asian Musical Instruments

Western Musical Instruments

• Strings• Woodwinds• Brass• Percussion

-- produce sound from one or more vibrating strings

-- sounded by bowing and plucking– Bowing

String Instruments

• The bow consists of a stick with many hairs stretched between its ends. Bowing the instrument's string causes a stick-slip phenomenon to occur, which makes the string vibrate.

-- produce sound from one or more vibrating strings

-- sounded by bowing and plucking– Bowing – Plucking

String Instruments

a method of playing on instruments by a finger or thumbther quills (now plastic plectra) to pluck the strings.

-- musical instrument that produces sound by vibration of mouthpiece reeds

Woodwind Instruments

• Bassoon• Clarinet• Saxophone

• -- musical instrument that produces sound by vibration of mouthpiece reeds or by passage of air over the mouthpiece.

Woodwind Instruments

a flute is a reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening.

-- musical instrument that produces sound by sympathetic vibration of air in a tubular resonator in sympathy with the vibration of the player's lips

-- came with two families: – Valved

Brass Instruments

• use a set of valves operated by the player's fingers

-- a musical instrument that produces sound by sympathetic vibration of air in a tubular resonator in sympathy with the vibration of the player's lips

-- came with two families: – Valved– Slide

Brass Instruments

• use a slide to change the length of tubing

-- a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater, or rubbed by hand, or struck against another similar instrument.

Percussion Instruments

• Clapstick• hang• Xylophone

• Flutes• Stringed Instruments• Percussion Instruments

Asian Musical Instruments

Musicians play this instrument by placing their lips at the top end of the flute and blowing softly.

FLUTES

• Shakuhachi flute• Nose flute

• flutes made from the wing bones of red-crowned cranes

-- The pipa player plucks the strings with his right hand and uses the fingers on his left hand to manipulate the strings to create melodies and sound effects.

Stringed Instruments

• Asian percussion instruments not only provide rhythmic accompaniment, but may also perform dramatic solos. Percussion instruments may also represent specific character roles in productions.

• Asian percussion instruments are divided into three categories:– Wood– Brass– Leather

Percussion

• Wooden xylophone• muyu

• Yunlos (cymbals)

• The frame of this drum consists of thick pieces of hard wood fastened together in a circle and enclosed with a metal band. The bell-shaped drum has an open bottom, while the top gets covered with pig or cow hide. Jing Bangu