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The Woodwind Family
The Woodwind Family
The flute is the smallest of the beginner instruments. It is a very popular selection each year, but only a small portion of those wishing to play flute will be selected.
The oboe is similar in its appearance to a clarinet, but it is played using a “double reed” instead of a single reed and mouthpiece. Selection of oboe players is EXTREMELY limited.
The bassoon is the largest instrument in the woodwind family. It is similar to the oboe in the fact that it uses a double reed to produce the sound. Selection of bassoon players is EXTREMELY limited.
Unlike the oboe, the clarinet uses a “single reed” and a mouthpiece to produce the sound. Clarinet is a popular instrument each year that many students will get the opportunity to play.
The alto saxophone gives the impression of being both a brass AND woodwind instrument, but it is indeed considered a woodwind instrument. The alto saxophone (which uses a single reed like the clarinet) is a very popular instrument and only a few students will be selected for this instrument.
The Brass Family
The Brass Family
The trumpet is the smallest member of the brass family. The sound on trumpet is produced by buzzing into a small mouthpiece.
The French Horn is a member of the brass family. The sound of the French Horn is produced by buzzing into a small mouthpiece similar to a trumpet. Students with good musical ears should consider French Horn.
Like the French Horn, trombone players should have good “musical ears”. The trombone is played like the other brass instruments, but uses a slide instead of valves.
The euphonium (you-PHONE-knee-yum) is sometimes known as the baritone. It is a member of the brass family and looks like a small version of a tuba. Its sound is similar to that of a trombone, but it uses valves (like trumpet) instead of a slide (like trombone).
The tuba is the largest instrument in the band and many would believe it would be hard to physically manage. The tubas we use for beginners are ¾ size and easy to handle.
The percussion family includes mallet instruments (bells, xylophone, marimba), accessories (triangle, tambourine, cymbals) and battery instruments (snare drum, bass drum, timpani). Because of the amount of organization needed in the percussion section, it is the most select, hand-picked section of the band. Only students with low discipline problems, and extremely high gross and fine motor skills will be considered for percussion.
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