Woodwind 2 (15 mins, ~13 MB)
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Description
The Boehm flute has a cylindrical body and a tapered headjoint, which is required to compensate for the flattening effect of increased lip cover over the embouchure hole in the upper register. Like the saxophone, the clarinet has a mouthpiece and a single reed. It has distinctive tone qualities in the low (Chalumeau) register and higher (clarinet) register. The tone quality of the oboe and bassoon, which both have double reeds, is characterized by distinctive formants.
More Episodes
In singing, air pressure from the lungs is used to set the vocal folds into periodic oscillation producing a pitched sound source at the base of the vocal tract. By changing the positions of the jaw, lips and tongue the resonances of the air in the vocal tract, called vocal formants, can be...
Published 02/14/10
The important acoustical characteristic common to members of the musical brass instrument family is not the material of construction, but the way in which the note is sounded by vibrating the lips against the rim of a mouthpiece. The lips act as a valve, open and closing periodically to modulate...
Published 02/12/10
Almost all brass instruments have air column resonances which are close to forming a harmonic series; this gives rise to the familiar pattern of “bugle call” natural notes. In the upper register the harmonics are close enough together to allow a diatonic scale to be played without modifying...
Published 02/12/10