Jacie's Blog Posts

The Violin

Ending on an up-bow, the orchestra pauses before standing up and bowing. Cellos, violas, string bass, and violins are all a part of the orchestra. The concertmaster, an expert master violinist smiles at his orchestra, pleased with their performance.

What is a violin? What part do they play in an orchestra? A violin is a four-stringed instrument, usually with a wooden body and neck. You play the violin with a bow, which is a wooden stick with horsehair strung from top to bottom. The horsehair is usually coated with rosin, which is hardened tree sap. Rosin makes the hair on the bow almost sticky, which helps with producing sound. Sound on a violin is produced by running the hair side of the bow up and down in-between the fingerboard and the bridge. Most players use chinrests to help them secure the instrument and play better.

The violin is a very important part of the orchestra. Violins usually carry the melody, but sometimes melody switches to the other stringed instruments. Violins are usually split up into sections; first violins, second violins, and third violins. First violins play the melody, second violins play the harmony, and third violins play harmony. The concertmaster is usually the first chair violin, and he/she runs everyone through warm-ups and tuning.

The first violin was made in the sixteenth century, and only had three strings. The violin has many cousins, which include the viola and cello. The creation of violins has evolved over the centuries from three to four strings, and the addition of a chinrest in the nineteenth century.

The violin is perfect for many different genres of music, from pop to classical, and from country to horror sounds.

Violins are beautiful instruments with amazing sound, and I think people should appreciate the work and dedication orchestral players put in to produce classical music more.

References: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_violin

The Trumpet

What do you think of when you hear the word “trumpet”? I personally think of angels blowing horns, or of a band where the trumpets have the melody. The trumpet is one of my favorite instruments. It has a rich tone that rings out clearly, and the shiny bright look of it adds to its appeal. I first was introduced to the trumpet seven months ago, when a friend loaned me one. I had trouble figuring out how to produce a noise at first, but eventually got the hang of it.

To play the trumpet, you have to learn how to buzz. Buzzing is where you vibrate your lips by pushing air through them. You do not want to puff up your cheeks as you do this. Once you know how to buzz, you can try experimenting with a trumpet and adjust your buzz as needed. I learned best by buzzing into the mouthpiece already on the trumpet, listening to the tone, and making sure I was buzzing correctly. After buzzing, fingering and form are next. Notes are formed on the trumpet by buzzing and pressing different valve combinations. If you blow air through your mouth harder, and make a smaller hole with your lips, you will get a higher sound. The individual notes come from pressing down the three valves on top of the trumpet.

The trumpet can be used in many different styles of music. It can play anything from screaming jazz to relaxing classical melodies. The sound of the trumpet can be changed with mutes to accompany pieces better. There are several different types of mutes; the most common mute is a straight mute. Straight mutes dampen the trumpets sound so it is not as loud. They come in handy when you want to practice at home.

Whether you enjoy instruments or not, I think everyone should be knowledgeable and appreciate where music comes from.

Sources:

trumpet mutes: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mute_(music)

Is The Piano Right For You?

Why should I play the piano? Why is the piano any different from any other instrument? These questions can be answered several different ways. There are many advantages to learning how to play the piano. You can learn different brands, styles, and ways of playing a piano. You can play jazz, classical, pop, or broadway. With the piano, you can play both bass, and melody. You almost have the whole orchestra right there, in your hands! Well, not exactly, but learning to play songs with both hands flying is a thrilling feeling that cannot be duplicated.

Learning to play the piano is very helpful if you plan on learning other instruments in the future. With piano, you learn to distinguish the differences of the treble and bass clefs, rhythms, and much more. The piano is one of the most common instruments that people choose to learn, because of how easy it is to learn simple melodies.

What is the history of the piano? The piano was first created in the 1700s by a man named Bartolomeo Cristofori. Cristofori was appointed to take care of harpsichords in the Florentine court, and somehow came up with the piano. The piano is actually a stringed instrument, using cloth covered hammers to strike from one to three strings at a time. In an orchestra setting, a piano is actually considered a percussion instrument, along with drums, cymbals, marimba, and xylophone.