Chapter 18:Composing and Arranging for Voices and Instruments 229
Brass
Brass instruments typically are made of brass. However, so are saxophones and
cymbals and timpani, and they’re not part of the brass family; so that really isn’t
a good indicator, is it? Nope, what makes brass instruments unique is that length
of brass tubing wound up into a tight little package, the open mouthpiece you
blow into, and the three or four valves you use (in conjunction with changing
the shape of your lips) to create different tones.
The trumpet is the brash and annoying younger brother of the brass family,
the trombone is the more stable older brother, and the tuba is the not-always-
serious uncle. Also hanging around is the weird foreign relation, the French
horn; and a few other unusual relatives, such as the baritone. All in all, it’s a
rather loud and brassy bunch—pun intended.
Brass instruments use either the treble or bass clefs, depending on their predom-
inant pitch.
Keyboards
Depending on whom you ask, keyboard instruments are really string instruments
or percussion instruments. In reality, they’re a little of both. The sounds are
produced by internal strings, which are struck by tiny hammers—much like per-
cussion instruments are struck.
There are many different types of keyboards, and they all have fairly wide
ranges. The piano, of course, is the big dog, but you can’t forget about organs,
or harpsichords, or any number of electronic synthesizers. A full piano has 88
keys; some smaller instruments can have shorter keyboards. Without exception,
all modern keyboard instruments sound in concert pitch.
Percussion
When you talk percussion, you’re talking about a lot of different instruments.
Percussion instruments make noise when you hit them or shake them, so the
family includes everything from snare drums and cymbals to marimbas and tim-
pani. Most percussion instruments are of indefinite pitch—that is, although they
make a noise when you hit them (or shake them), that noise isn’t associated with
a specific pitch. Other percussion instruments, such as timpani and the mallet
family, do produce a definite pitch (or pitches).
When you’re writing for an indefinite pitch instrument, you don’t have to follow
standard staff notation. For example, when you write for drum set, you assign
different parts of the staff to different drums and cymbals in the set. In the fol-
lowing example, the bass drum is the bottom space on the staff; the snare drum
is the third space up. Cymbals are at the top, notated by X-shaped note heads.
Writing for drum set.