Other Musical Instruments

Other Musical Instruments

Alongside more common musical instruments that may be found in orchestras and within bands such as guitars, pianos and drums, there are many more types of instruments available.

Within an orchestra, there are many different types of brass or woodwind instruments, as well as a whole range of percussion instruments and various types of drums.

Some of these more unusual musical instruments are not widely known, while some have been featured on number one singles and albums over the years.

Other types of musical instruments

• Dancing lights – Possibly not fitting the usual description of an instrument, these novelty items are very popular with children. Many of them will move and dance to music that you play to them, while others feature their own in-built musical numbers
• Kazoo – Not as popular as they used to be in the early twentieth century, a kazoo is a reed instrument that you blow into in order to make a tune. Blowing harder or softer, or pursing the lips in a particular way will help you change the notes being played
• Stylophone – An early electronic instrument, these work by amplifying the different frequencies you can play around with when creating a small electrical current. One of these was famously used in the introduction to David Bowie’s ‘Space Oddity’
• Accordion – Popular in Italy and around Europe, accordions are essentially a portable keyboard based instrument that is played by squeezing the two sides together. Playing the different keys on the keyboard allows you to change the pitch of the air as it escapes, creating different notes

Other musical instrument accessories

• Carry case – some of the smaller instruments can be carried in a pocket, whilst others may require a larger case for transportation. Even the smaller ones may benefit from having their own case to keep them free from dirt and dust
• Tuition books – Many of the instruments available have books that you can buy to help learn how to play them
• Replacement parts – Some of the electrically powered instruments such as dancing lights may have spare or replacement parts available for when they wear out.