Musical Instruments Bring Music to Life

The world of musical instruments is as vast as it is old. Man has been making music since he first banged rocks together; and since that time music has become a large part of the human experience. It is the focal point of many human activities and the instruments used to create our music are continually evolving.

Drums are arguably the oldest of musical instruments. They the most primal of any existing group of instruments, but have continually been a staple of most genres of music. Their use can be documented all over the world, and in nearly every culture and in every era. Today, drums are the heart of most popular music, whether they be acoustic drums or electronic.

Stringed instruments have been used by humans for millennia. Evidence of these musical instruments can be found dating as far back as Ancient Greece and earlier. This group of instruments has evolved to include a great many variations, ranging from the violin to the guitar, with each sub-category including even more variations. The guitar, for instance, can be found in acoustic, electric and hybrid configurations. The invention of electronic effects processors and other types of synthesizers have only served to increase the variety within this group.

Finally, there are the wind instruments. This group of musical instruments can be broken down into two main categories; brass and woodwind. Brass instruments get their name because they are almost always made from metal, and that metal is often brass. Sound is produced by vibrating the lips against a mouthpiece, and this vibration is amplified through the tubing of the instrument. Examples of brass instruments include trumpets, trombones and tubas; just to name a few.

Woodwinds are members of the wind group of musical instruments, but their name is a bit of a misnomer. Woodwinds aren't always made from wood. Their name most often has to do with the fact that they require the use of a wooden reed in order to produce sound, but even this aspect is not universal to the group. Flutes, for example, are not only made from metal (although they can be made of wood, and most were for centuries) but they also do not use a reed of any kind. Saxophones are also made from metal, but they do require a wooden reed.