Timbre

 Musical Instruments

Pronounced "tambour" it means: The tone quality or the unique characteristic of a tone; tone color. The timbre of a note produced on an instrument or sung by the human voice is determined in part by the size, design and make up of the instrument or vocal chords and by the way the sound is produced. Other considerations that influence timbre is what the instrument is made of and the position of the playing mechanisms in relation to the instrument. Dark, bright, nasal, sweet, natural, smooth, full, thin, sharp, dull, mellow, round, full bodied and warm are just some of the adjectives used to describe the timbre or tone quality of an instrument or singing voice.

When one thinks of timbre one thinks of an instrument or voice producing sound. Once an instrument produces sound and the sound waves are carried through the air, the listener hears the sound and turns it into something meaningful. The types and kinds of musical instruments of the world are many and varied. In Western Classical music there are six categories and at least four instruments from each. Most of the instruments from the following categories cover the range from high to low SATB (soprano, alto, tenor, bass):

1.     violin

2.     violin excerpt

3.     viola

4.     viola excerpt

5.     cello

6.     cello excerpt

7.     double bass

8.     double bass excerpt

9.     piccolo

10.  flute

11.  flute excerpt (with harp)

12.  oboe

13.  oboe excerpt

14.  clarinet

15.  clarinet excerpt

16.  bassoon

17.  bassoon excerpt

18.  trumpet

19.  trumpet excerpt

20.  trombone

21.  trombone slide

22.  French horn

23.  French horn(s) excerpt

24.  tuba

25.  tuba excerpt

26.  tympani (kettle drum)

27.  bass drum

28.  cymbal

29.  snare drum

30.  gong

31.  triangle

32.  tambourine

33.  castanet

34.  xylophone

35.  vibraphone (vibes)

36.  whip

37.  tubular bells

38.  guitar

39.  harp

40.  lute

41.  celesta

42.  harpsichord

43.  organ

44.  piano