BASIC VOCABULARY. Bow: arco. Slide brass instruments: instrumentos de viento metal de varas. To bow: frotar.

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2 BASIC VOCABULARY Bow: arco To bow: frotar. Brass instrument: instrumentos de viento metal. Double bass: contrabajo. Edge: bisel. Electrophones: electrófonos. Embouchure: embocadura. Feathers: plumas. Guitar: guitarra. Hammer: martillo. Harp: arpa. Horn: trompa. To join: unir, juntar. Lute: laúd. Slide brass instruments: instrumentos de viento metal de varas. Stick: palo. To strike: golpear. String instruments: instrumentos de cuerda. To stretch: extender. Reed: lengüeta (single-reed: lengüeta simple; double-reed: lengüeta doble). Trumpet: trompeta. Trombone: trombón. To rub: frotar. Valved brass: instrumentos de viento metal de válvulas. Woodwind instrument: instrumentos de viento madera.

3 INSTRUMENTS FAMILIES There are different ways to classify musical instruments. One way is to group them as they are in a Western orchestra: strings, woodwinds, brass, and percussion. STRING FAMILY A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by strings that vibrate. The most common string instruments are the violin, cello, viola, double bass, guitar and harp. All string instruments produce sound from one or more vibrating strings. The pitch of the sound depends on the length, the thickness and the tension of the strings, which is adjusted with tuners, allowing the tuning of the instrument. The body of the instrument then transmits the sound to the surrounding air. They are usually categorized by the technique used to make the strings vibrate. The three most common techniques are bowing, plucking and striking.

4 BOWED STRING Bowing is a method used in some string instruments, including the violin, viola, cello and the double bass. The bow consists of a stick with many hairs stretched between its ends that make the string vibrate. Violin Viola Cello Double bass Bow PLUCKED STRING Plucking is the method of playing by using a finger or some type of plectrum on instruments such as the guitar, harp or lute. This category includes keyboard instruments such as the harpsichord, which uses feathers (now plastic plectra) to pluck the strings.

5 Classical guitar Harp STRUCK S T R I N G The third common method of sound production in string instruments is to strike the string with a hammer. The most well-known instrument to use this method, by far, is the piano. All pianos have two pedals. The soft pedal (the left one) changes the trajectory of the hammers so that they hit the strings softer. The damper pedal (the right one) raises all the dampers so that the strings can continue to vibrate when the keys have been released.

6 WIND FAMILY The sound is produced by the vibration of the air column inside the tube of the instrument. In wind instruments, the pitch of sound is determined by the length of the air column and the thickness of the tubes. The longer and thicker an instrument is, the lower the sound is. The shorter and the thinner an instrument is, the higher the sound is. Most wind instruments have different mechanisms (holes, keys, pistons, etc.) which allow the modification of the length of the tubes and, therefore, their tuning. instruments. Within the wind family we distinguish between woodwind instruments and brass WOODWIND INSTRUMENTS A woodwind instrument is a musical instrument which produces sound when the player blows air against an edge (lip plate in the case of the flute) or a thin piece of wood called a reed. Most of these instruments were originally made of wood, but some, such as the saxophone and some flutes, are now commonly made of other materials like metals or plastics. Types of woodwind instruments: Single-reed instruments use just one reed. When air is forced between the reed and the mouthpiece, the reed vibrates, creating the sound. Single reed instruments include the clarinet and saxophone families. Double-reed instruments use two small pieces of cane joined together at the base. The air vibrates between the two pieces of cane. Double-reed instruments include the oboe, the cor anglais and the bassoon.

7 Flutes produce sound when air is blown across a hole. Flutes include transverse flutes and the recorder family. Transverse flute Clarinet Oboe

8 BRASS INSTRUMENTS A brass instrument is a musical instrument whose tone is produced by the vibration of the player s lips into an "embouchure". Modern brass instruments generally come in one of two families: valved brass instruments which use a set of valves to change the pitch and slide brass instruments which use a slide to change the length of tubing. The main brass instruments are the horn, the trumpet, the trombone and the tuba. Trumpet Horn Tuba Trombone

9 Piston valve in trumpet Embouchures PERCUSSION INSTRUMENTS A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound by being hit with an implement, shaken, rubbed, scraped, or by any other action which makes the object vibrate. When classifying instruments by function it is useful to note if a percussion instrument makes a definite pitch or indefinite pitch. For example, some percussion instruments (such as the marimba and timpani) can produce pitched notes and, therefore, can perform melodies. Other instruments (such as drum and crash cymbal) produce unpitched sounds and, therefore, can only perform rhythms, not melodies. Some of the main percussion instruments are the drum, the timpani, the xylophone, the vibraphone, the marimba and the triangle.

10 ELECTROPHONES Finally, electrophones are instruments that keep their acoustic resonators but are also amplified and altered electronically, for instance the electric guitar. Electric guitar Synthesizer

11 INSTRUMENTAL GROUPS The same as with voices, instruments can either intervene as soloists or form groups of different sizes: Small groups that don t usually have more than 10 performers are called chamber groups (in reference to the rooms or halls where this music used to be performed). These are small groups of soloists in which each part of the composition is performed by a single instrumentalist. In relation to big groups, the most important one is the orchestra. An orchestra is an instrumental ensemble, usually with string, brass, woodwind sections, and possibly a percussion section as well. A smaller orchestra (of about fifty musicians or fewer) is called a chamber orchestra. A full size orchestra (about 100 musicians) may sometimes be called a symphony orchestra. Conducting is the act of directing a musical performance by using visible gestures. Orchestras, choirs, concert bands and other musical ensembles often have conductors.

12 TO SUM UP

13 The world of orchestra conducting is still a difficult territory for women. They are usually most in the studies, but few achieve recognition. Among the ten most famous directors in the world there are no women and the fact that two of the most prestigious orchestras in the world, Berlin and Vienna, have not accepted the integration of female instrumentalists, reflects how slow are the advances in this speciality. In Spain we emphasize names like Inma Shara or Isabel López Calzada, creator and director of the Symphonic Orchestra of Women of Madrid. Other important names are Virginia Martínez or Pilar Jurado. At the world level, the last important appointment of an woman conductor was the Lithuanian Mirga Grazinyte-Tyla (Vilna, 1986) at the head of the Birmingham City Symphony. This orchestra has served as a springboard for great batons such as Simon Rattle and Andris Nelsons, currently conductors (respectively) of two of the best orchestras on the planet: the Berlin Philharmonic and the Boston Symphony. Unfortunately, male chauvinism is still very present in the world of conducting. Currently it is estimated that only 10% of the world's conductors are women. Being aware of this reality is the first step to change it.

14 RHYTHMIC DICTATION

15 INSTRUMENTAL PRACTICE