The Flute is a woodwind instrument. (While today it’s silver-plated, the earliest flutes were made of wood.) Each note has a different fingering, and the sound is made by the player blowing over the hole in the headjoint (the part without the keys). The flute can play some of the highest notes in the band, and often gets to play the melody and some of the “flashy” parts in the music!

The Clarinet is similar to the flute. Both are woodwinds and both use a number of keys to reach all of the different notes. The clarinet though can play lower notes, and its sound comes from a vibrating reed attached to the mouthpiece. Because it can play high and low notes, the clarinet can do many jobs in band and can be teamed up with a variety of instruments!

The trumpet is a brass instrument and uses its three valves to open different tubing for its notes. Players have to “buzz” their lips to make a sound, and make their lips tighter or looser for high and low notes. Trumpets play a lot of melody parts, and often get to play the loudest parts of the song. Trumpets are used in band, orchestra and jazz ensemble!

The Trombone is a lot like the trumpet, but it plays much lower notes. Its sound is made the same way, but instead of valves, it uses a slide to change the length of its tubing for different notes. Trombones get to play all the low, loud parts in band, orchestra, and jazz ensemble.

The euphonium is sometimes known as the baritone. It is a member of the brass family and players have to “buzz” their lips to make a sound. The Euphonium looks like a small version of a tuba and has a VERY beautiful sound. In fact, the name euphonium is based after the word BEAUTIFUL SOUND!

Percussion includes all kinds of drums (like snare drum), mallet instruments (xylophone, vibraphone, bells), and auxiliary percussion (triangle, tambourine, etc.)

In beginning band, percussion is not “drum set”. It is not part of the curriculum and students that choose to participate in percussion will learn to play ALL of the percussion instruments, not just hitting a drum. Students that have a piano background will be given priority if they choose percussion!