Instrument Demonstrations

Flute

The flute is a member of the woodwind family. The flute is the highest sounding instrument in sixth grade band, and plays melody most of the time when the band is playing concert music. The flute is not especially loud, and it is very light, small, and easy to carry. A flute sound is made by blowing across a hole on the lip plate, and is similar to blowing across a bottle top. Learning to make a sound with a flute sometimes requires patience!

The flute is played in bands and orchestras, and also plays important solo parts in many types of music. Flutes can be heard in many styles of music.


People who are a good physical match for the flute:

  • Have no serious double joints in their fingers.

  • Have a smooth, flat upper lip.

  • Have “nimble,” coordinated fingers that all need to change quickly from note to note.

  • A band director can help you explore the flute at a fitting, and help you to decide if flute is a comfortable match for you.

Oboe

The oboe is a specialty instrument. It is a member of the woodwind family, and should only be chosen after careful consideration. The oboe is extra delicate and challenging, it requires expensive, delicate reeds, and sometimes it is just plain fussy. However, it is a beautiful sounding instrument that provides an important and special sound in our bands. It is small and easy to carry on the bus.

The oboe plays melodies in the high range of the band with flutes and trumpets. It is also featured in beautiful solo parts sometimes, and can be heard in bands and orchestras. Excellent oboe players often enjoy scholarship opportunities in college!

People who are a good physical match for oboe:

  • Have no serious double joints in their fingers.

  • Have “nimble,”coordinated fingers that all need to change quickly from note to note.

ALSO

Oboe players will need the extra help of a private instructor to help with fussy reed issues, special techniques, and tricks of the trade that make oboe playing happier and more beautiful.

Oboe players should be people with a strong work ethic and study habits. Oboe players sometimes have to be smart problem solvers, and patient when learning something new isn’t easy.

Oboists do not play oboes outside for marching season in high school. Directors will help oboists find a secondary instrument to play during football season. Many oboists find that saxophone is a pretty easy switch because the keys are similar.

A band director can help you explore the oboe at a fitting, and help you to decide if oboe is a comfortable match for you.

Clarinet

The clarinet is a member of the woodwind family, and it is capable of a very wide range of sounds. It sometimes plays middle range sounds with the saxophones, and sometimes plays high sounding melodies with trumpets or flutes. A clarinet sound is made by the vibration of a reed when the player blows into the mouthpiece. Clarinet players need to buy replacement reeds occasionally, but they are not as expensive as saxophone or oboe reeds.

The clarinet is very versatile, and an important part of the band. We love to have a large clarinet section, just as an orchestra loves to have many violins. The clarinet is small and easy to carry on the bus. Clarinet is used in many styles and types of music, and is also used to play special solo music. Strong clarinet players sometimes find that learning saxophone or bassoon as a secondary instrument is rewarding.

People who are a good physical match for the clarinet:

  • Have no serious double joints in their fingers.

  • Have “fleshy” finger prints big enough to cover holes on the instrument.

  • Have “nimble,” coordinated fingers that all need to change quickly from note to note.

  • Have strong corner mouth muscles to make a good sound.

A band director can help you explore the clarinet at a fitting, and help you to decide if clarinet is a comfortable match for you.

Saxophone

The saxophone is a member of the woodwind family despite being made of brass. Like the clarinet, the sound begins with a wooden, or “cane” reed. It plays middle range parts in the band, but in jazz band, it plays more melodies. It can be very versatile because it sometimes blends with brass, sometimes with other woodwinds, and sometimes plays special solo music. The sound of a saxophone is made by the vibration of a reed when the player blows into the mouthpiece. Saxophone players need to buy and replace reeds regularly because they wear out or break. For many, the sax is not convenient to carry far or have on a bus.

There is a family of saxophones, and occasionally a student might consider Tenor Sax (especially after 6th grade and students grow a little) which has the same fingering, but it is much larger and sounds lower. The tenor sax plays a lot of parts in common with the trombones.

People who are a good physical match for the saxophone:

  • Have no serious double joints in their fingers.

  • Have strength and determination to carry and handle a medium-heavy instrument to take it home for practice.

  • Have “nimble,” coordinated fingers that all need to change quickly from note to note.

  • Strong corner mouth muscles to make a good sound.

A band director can help you explore the saxophone at a fitting, and help you decide if saxophone is a comfortable match for you.

Trumpet

The trumpet is a member of the brass family. Sound is made by buzzing lips and blowing into the mouthpiece. Trumpet notes are changed by moving fingers on the valves AND by changing lip tension and air speed. Believe it or not, several notes from high to low can be produced without changing any fingers at all! Because notes on brass instruments can be changed several ways, it helps to have good pitch-matching skills if you are a brass player. Carrying a trumpet on the bus is generally easy for almost anyone.

Trumpets are used in many, many types of music including school bands, orchestras, jazz bands and rock bands. The trumpets in school bands play melody parts much of the time and can also play special solo music in other situations. Sometimes students discover that their lips don’t cooperate with the small mouthpiece of a trumpet (or braces create difficulty) and find it very easy to switch to Baritone or Tuba. Often, French Horn players switch from trumpet as well.

People who are a good physical match for the trumpet:

  • Have a strong air stream to make a big sound and change notes.

  • Have good listening skills to hear note changes.

A director can help you explore the trumpet so you can decide if the trumpet is a comfortable match for you.

F Horn

The French Horn is a specialty instrument, and a member of the brass family. Sound is made by buzzing lips and blowing into the mouthpiece. French Horn notes are changed by moving fingers on the keys (rotary valves) AND by changing lip tension and air speed. Believe it or not, several notes from high to low can be produced without changing any fingers at all! Because notes on brass instruments can be changed several ways, it helps to have good pitch-matching skills if you are a brass player. In fact, because so many pitches can be manipulated just by lip changes, the horn really requires OUTSTANDING pitch matching skills.

The French Horn is played in school bands, in orchestras, and also for other special solo music. It has a beautiful, mellow sound, but also can be played with dramatic power. In marching bands, French Horn players play a “cousin” instrument called the Mellophone. It is very similar to play, but it is shaped more like a trumpet and is more durable for outdoor playing.

Carrying a French Horn on the bus is difficult, but we have a great solution!! The school owns enough French Horns that we can let you borrow one for your class time, and you can keep the one you own or rent at your house! Simply bring your mouthpiece and book back and forth, and you’ll never need to fuss with an awkward French Horn case on the bus.

People who are a good physical match for the French Horn:

  • Have outstanding listening skills to hear note changes.

  • Are good problem-solvers with determination. The horn isn’t always easy and finding the right pitch sometimes is tricky.

  • Private lessons are strongly recommended for this specialty instrument.

A director can help you explore the French Horn so you can decide if the trumpet is a comfortable match for you.

Trombone (the fun machine!)

The Trombone is a member of the brass family, and its sound is made by buzzing lips and blowing into the mouthpiece. By changing lip tension and air speed, several notes from high to low can be produced without changing any fingers at all! In addition to changing notes with lips, the Trombone is the ONLY instrument in the band with a SLIDE!!!! The slide helps to change notes and allows the trombone to be the one and only instrument that can make the famous “glissando” that trombone players love to play!

Because notes on brass instruments can be changed several ways, it helps to have good pitch-matching skills if you are a brass player. In fact, because the slide has no notches for exact placement, trombone players need to listen carefully to hear if the note is just right. This requires excellent pitch matching skills.

The Trombone is played in school bands, in orchestras, jazz bands and also for other special solo music. It can be a gentle instrument, but it can also play with great power. It is one of the low sounding instruments in the band, and trombone players use “bass clef.” If you are not familiar with bass clef, don’t worry. Our students learn one note at a time and find it easy to do. Taking a trombone on a bus isn’t too bad because even though the case is large, the instrument isn’t very heavy.

People who are a good match for the trombone:

  • Have excellent pitch matching skills.

  • Don’t need super long arms. Sixth graders have arms long enough for the trombone.

A director can help you explore the trombone at your fitting so that you can decide if the trombone is a good match for you. * We have many (older) school trombones available for students to use during class so that students can leave their personal instrument home for practice.

Baritone

The Baritone Horn (sometimes called Euphonium) is a member of the brass family. A sound is made by blowing strong air and buzzing lips into the mouthpiece. The baritone changes note the way a trumpet does – by changing lip buzz speed and by changing valves. Believe it or not, several notes from high to low can be produced without changing any fingers at all! Because notes on brass instruments can be changed several ways, it helps to have good pitch-matching skills if you are a brass player.

The Baritone Horn plays low parts in band that often match the trombones. The baritone is a great choice for people who want to play brass, but whose lips don’t cooperate with a small mouthpiece. The baritone is also closely related to the tuba, but it’s not quite so low or large. It is not easy to take a baritone on the bus, but we have a great solution! Students who play baritone can rent or buy an instrument to practice at home, but use a school-owned instrument for class. Only your mouthpiece and books need to be brought back and forth from home.

The Baritone is normally a bass clef instrument (don’t worry if you are not familiar with bass clef, we will teach the notes one at a time), but trumpet players who switch to baritone can learn it using a treble clef system.

People who are a good match for the baritone:

  • Have good pitch matching skills.

  • Are large enough to handle the instrument.

A director can help you explore the Baritone Horn so you can decide if it is a comfortable match for you.

Tuba

The Tuba is a member of the brass family. A sound is made by blowing strong air and buzzing lips into the mouthpiece. The tuba changes notes the way a trumpet does – by changing lip buzz speed and by changing valves. Believe it or not, several notes from high to low can be produced without changing any fingers at all! Because notes on brass instruments can be changed several ways, it helps to have good pitch-matching skills if you are a brass player.

The Tuba plays the lowest sounds in the band and is famous for dotting the I in the OSU Marching Band. (The “Sousaphone” actually is the marching version of the Tuba. The tubing is wrapped differently to make it easier to carry). The tuba is a great choice for students who love low sounds and know how important it is to provide the foundation for the whole band. It is not easy to take a tuba on the bus, but we have a great solution! Students who play tuba can borrow a school instrument for home practice and use another school instrument for class. Only a mouthpiece and books need to be brought back and forth from home.

People who are a good match for the tuba:

  • Have good pitch matching skills.

  • Are large enough to handle the instrument.

  • Have strong air to fill a big instrument.

A director can help you explore the tuba so you can decide if it is a comfortable match for you. Sometimes a smaller student who loves the tuba will start on a baritone and use a tuba book (same fingers, different range to read) and switch to a tuba after growing a little bigger.

Percussion

The percussion family includes instruments that are struck, scraped, or even shaken to make sound. Percussion in school band does not include "drum set" playing like kids play in Jazz Band. We do not teach "only drums" Percussionists in the New Albany Middle School Band are expected to be "multiple musicians" who play a wide variety of instruments. During 6th grade, we focus on mallet playing and rhythm playing with a practice pad. Sixth grade band percussionists purchase a "bell kit" which includes a portable mallet instrument that has keys similar to a xylophone, and a practice pad. Snare drums are not normally used in the beginner class because of the volume a group of drums creates. The kit also includes a pair of sticks and some specialty mallets. The instrument case is larger than a sax case, but it can be taken on a bus.

Students who play percussion learn to read melodies, just as all the other band musicians do. In addition, the percussionists become specialists at reading and playing rhythms. Some instruments in the percussion section are: marimba, orchestra bells, snare drum, bass drum, vibraphone, cymbals, tympani, woodblocks, tambourines, and many other instruments.

Students who are a good match for percussion:

  • Have excellent coordination and rhythmic skills.

  • Are outstanding citizens who can be trusted to handle, use, and care for expensive school equipment.

  • Are excellent students who are willing to do extra practice to learn both mallet skills and rhythm skills.

  • Have excellent pitch matching skills to hear tympani notes.

  • Are confident, independent learners and good problem solvers. Often, a percussionist will have a part unlike anyone else in the room, and it may often be challenging.

(A teacher can help you explore percussion at a fitting to help you decide if it is a good physical match for you.)

BEFORE a student will be allowed to have a percussion fitting appointment, a brass or woodwind instrument fitting MUST be done first. A percussion fitting will include:

  • A rhythm skills check

  • A pitch matching skills check

  • Straight talk with a parent and the student about being a "multiple musician," being responsible for expensive school equipment, and work habits.

Many students discover that the challenges of percussion are greater than those of a brass or woodwind playing, so it is in the best interest of our students to have a "Plan B" if the percussion fitting is not satisfying to the student. Please contact a director at your woodwind/brass fitting if you are interested in having a separate percussion appointment.