For this post I am going to talk about one of the several instruments that is similar to a piano. It is not a harpsichord. It is not a keyboard. It is a pipe organ. A great deal of people have either seen or heard this instrument. Some of the most amazing ones were carved in European Cathedrals like the several throughout France, Germany and Austria. The pipe organ is often the beautiful display of wooden or metal pipes that line the wall of a church or cathedral. These walls are controlled by the piano keys set up in two rows, one row above the other. This an example of a pipe organ in Paris.

The pipe organ operates by using bellows to blow air through the instrument. Different sounds are made by diverting the wind through different pipes. In order to control what direction the wind, as it is called, is diverted, the use of piano keys controls that control valves within the pipes. What makes an organ special as well, is the fact the notes that an organ produces do not decay over time like those of a piano or harpsichord. This effect is because the notes are driven through a consistent stream of air through the pipes as opposed to the percussion of a hammer against a taut vibrating wire.

Another special characteristic of pipe organs is that they have a system of stops that control which row of pipes are used. So, an organist, as they are called, can control octave and placement of notes along the pipe system. These stops can controlled by switches along the keyboard or by foot pedals that the organist would operate while playing. They way the keys control the diversion of wind is through the use of metal rods called trackers that move to activate levers and other parts in the organ system to affect the sound produced. It’s all fantastically mechanical. Those who love to see how things work would have a field day dissecting a pipe organ.

The pipe organ is the oldest instrument still used in classical music. That means it’s really old. The earliest versions were invented by the Ancient Greeks by applying a hand operated bellow to a pan flute-like instrument that is operated with tabs. Later on this evolved into a large instrument that operated the same essentially.

The pipe organ as it is seen today was first really produced in the twelfth century. Later on during the classical era, many classical composers utilized it in their music, and several of these pieces happened to church choir music. Further along in the timeline, during the twentieth century, a basic form of pipe organ was used in baseball games to play all those fun songs they play at every last baseball games. Also, older movie theaters had organists play at intermission because movies used to have intermissions that required live music.

The organ has evolved a bit over the years, but it was never really changed.

Before you say anything, there is a difference between a violin and the viola. There are several differences between these two instruments. The size, the tone, the range, the strings, and the name are all different. Now that that is out of the way, the viola is considered an important instrument to any orchestral ensemble. Well, I guess the viola is similar to a viola now that I think about it.

The viola is slightly larger than a violin. This makes a viola approximately a seventeen inch instrument. The viola also generally plays lower than the violin. The viola’s lowest note is an octave below middle C. The violin’s lowest note is the G bellow middle C. Along with its range, viola’s read off a different clef than most instruments. Viola’s read off of alto clef, which is basically alien to those who are only trained to know bass and treble clef. Anyway, the unique clef makes the viola extra hipster.

As far as the physical structure goes, the viola has the scroll at the top. That’s the swirly looking part. The neck and the fingerboard are attached right to the scroll and lead down to the body of the viola. The bridge supports the strings that are attached to the pegs in the scroll and to the end housing of the strings. The bottom has a chin rest, since the viola is help between the chin and the shoulder when played. The bow for a viola is only thicker and longer than the violin’s. Now, the viola has four strings. They are C, G, D, and A. A is the highest string and C is the lowest string. What’s nice about starting on a C is that a violist can play a C scale a lot easier, which is a nice scale to learn.

Anyway, the viola started out with many different, yet similar variations that occur all over Europe. The version seen today had the best ratio of neck size to entire body size to pitch of notes. This was a product of a lot of trial and error. Even people over the last century have been fiddling with the model of the viola to achieve it to fit a need they want it to fulfill.

For a great deal of time, violas were usually used to play harmonies and rarely used for melodies. This is prevalent in baroque and classical pieces. Sometimes, though, composers have made the viola as the featured instrument in his or her piece. The viola generally a deeper and more calming tone that many people prefer. Several classical and baroque composers especially liked using the viola to represent a peaceful lull in their piece.

The viola has been used for many other genres of music. They appear in some Eastern European folk songs and some contemporary music. Most of the songs the viola is featured, however, are generally folksy. The viola has also occurred in a few indie rock songs because of the instrument’s obscurity in contemporary music. Those indie bands love to be indie.

In this post, I’ll talk about the bassoon. This is an instrument I know very little to nothing about. It’s a woodwind instrument who falls into the double reed family. This means that it is an instrument that is played by blowing air across a reed and system to produce vibrations that occur at specific frequencies to produce musical sounds. The bassoon operates in this manner. As far as structure goes, the bassoon consists of six different parts. Each part is increment in how the sound is played from the bassoon. The bassoon itself is a rather large instrument. It’s ridiculously large. It ranges from five to eight feet in length and all this wood, metal and polish make the instrument heavy. A bassoonist acquaintance told me once, “It’s like playing with a piano on your lap.” This is a ridiculous comparison, but it gets the idea across.

Anyway, the bassoon as it appears today was first made in the baroque period in Europe. Famous baroque composers such as Antonio Vivaldi have utilized the bassoon in many pieces and ensembles. It was often used to support the rest of the woodwind section with a bass section. It has changed a bit since then, but it’s purpose hasn’t changed and is still used in several baroque pieces. It also appears in several pieces composed by classical composers like Mozart. In these instances, the bassoon appears as part of the full orchestra.

The bassoon has also been used in jazz music and jazz ensembles, though infrequently. The low docile tones of the bassoon really are a great contrast and harmonizer with an alto saxophone. Some jazz musicians and groups used the bassoon in some recordings during the early part and middle of the twentieth century. It lost favor though.

As far as pop goes, it is heard even less. The theme is rather obvious. The bassoon works better in large ensembles with a woodwind section that plays baroque music or certain classical pieces. To see it in any other situation is far less likely unless it was some ensemble that didn’t want to be main stream and also features a kazoo, mandolin, and triangle.

The bassoon itself is played diagonally. The musician puts blows into the mouth piece, which is connected to a double reed system that is attached to the bassoon. The air travels down the pipe and travels to the bottom of the instrument which has a U-bend in the instrument. The air travels up the other pipe. Along the way there are holes bored into the pipe which is what the musician would fingers over in order to manipulate the sound the bassoon produces. This seems rather complicated, but I have never played a bassoon before, so I could not offer anymore insight on how actually playing the instrument operates. It could be a simple task or maybe it is the most difficult instrument in the world. I’ll just have to try it out.

This post I have an instrument that is automatically associated with white, sandy beaches and portly men in grass skirts. First, let me clarify. I am referring to Hawaii and the Hawaiian culture. This instrument in question, however, is not Hawaiian in origin. It was actually introduced by Portuguese immigrants back in the 19th century. This instrument has four strings generally made from nylon or catgut. No, catgut is not made from the gut of a cat. It’s made from the gut of goats or other livestock. Anyway, this instrument is made of wood or plastic generally and has a small body. Any guess what it is? If anyone guessed mandolin, he answered incorrectly. For those who guessed ukulele, you obviously know a good deal about the ukulele, or you have just a grain of common sense. Either would work in this instance.

Anyway, as I said previously, the ukulele is directly associated with Hawaii and Hawaiian culture. It is often seen in media and television sitcoms that whenever someone from one of Hawaii’s islands are featured, a ukulele is either heard or seen. If I named all the Disney shows that had a “Hawaiian” special and had some rotund, jolly Hawaiian native playing a ukulele, I would take a half-decent amount of time. The fact that I can name more than one instance is enough to prove my point.

Now, the ukulele is a string instrument that is featured often in Hawaiian music or Hawaiian themed music. The ukulele generally possesses a light, happy tone that carries on to an audience. It is often perceived as a all-around happy instrument played by happy people.

The ukulele is played similarly to a guitar in the sense that multiple strings are strummed together to make a chord. The ukulele is often seen as a smaller guitar, though often, many people realize it isn’t a simple instrument to learn how to play. The range of notes one can play on the standard ukulele is average in relation to other instruments that have similar means of producing music. This makes it effective in replacing simpler guitar parts in music.

Being a string instrument, the ukulele also requires some maintenance and attention in order to keep it from breaking to easy. This means fixing gouges and scratches on the body of the ukulele. Just constantly tuning the strings if the strings slip. It can be a hassle to constantly tune strings that are slipping out of tune. This is especially and issue if the weather is humid outdoors. This is a general issue with most string instruments, though, so the ukulele isn’t uniquely cursed with the poor features.

The ukulele, however has some neat benefits. It’s a small instrument that can be very portable. As I mentioned before, it is a happy instrument, so people can be cheered up with a ukulele. It’s a interesting instrument to listen to and hear about as well.

The ukulele is all around interesting. It is also a good moral booster.

Does anyone hear that buzzing? Is there a bee loose in the room? Is  anyone allergic to bee venom? Well, did you bring epinephrine? Why wouldn’t you? You should know to bring it, especially after the incident at the picnic. What do you mean it’s a hassle? It’s just something you shouldn’t leave home without. It is. Anyway, it doesn’t really matter because this was a ridiculous introduction of the instrument featured in this post. The instrument is the kazoo and it’s humming sound has often been compared to the buzzing of a bee.

First of all, the kazoo seems more like a toy than a musical instrument. It is an instrument, though, so those of you who thought it wasn’t are wrong and should read more to redeem yourself. Yes, the kazoo is considered a musical instrument, but it’s in a category of musical instruments that everyone and anyone can play. This is one of the rare cases where it requires little to no practice to really get good at playing the kazoo. Seriously, anyone with a mouth, lips, and lungs can do it.

With that in mind, it’s that point in the post where I give a brief overview of the mechanics of the instrument. I do do that sometimes. Anyway, the kazoo is generally a metal or wooden tube with a hole at the top. There is a membrane of some sort set in the center of the tube, causing the buzzing sound when playing the instrument. The origin is disputed, but the patent was made in the 1880’s. It is said to be modeled after a similar instrument invented somewhere in sub-Saharan Africa, but for many reasons, that argument has been put to rest because the patent proved the legal invention and there was no documentation to support the other side.

This instrument, as it rightly should be, is rarely used in any professional setting over consistent performances. Whenever a kazoo appears in a song or other performance, it is usually for comical purposes only. Sometimes it is used to replace saxophone parts in popular songs by people on YouTube who have way too much free time.

As I mentioned earlier, almost anyone can play a kazoo. To play it is not difficult. First, get a kazoo. I described how they looked earlier, but if my description was not clear enough, here is a picture.

Now, here is a picture of a kazoo.

So, in order to play a kazoo, the you have to know how to hum. The kazoo just amplifies the humming sound someone makes and also makes it sound a lot more ridiculous. As you can tell, it does not get more complicated than this. Someone would have to be a real music aficionado in order to get this instrument mastered. No seriously, though, I can not possibly stress any more that this instrument is ridiculously easy to play.

So, the kazoo is a strange instrument to play or talk about. If you love to hear it though, look up the quartet the Kazoophony. They’ll definitely entertain you.