Music 3rd-5th p. 1 Name ______Class ______
UNDERSTANDING MUSIC: THE BRASS FAMILY Ferndale 3rd-5th Elementary Music: Lesson 2 Paper Supplement DIRECTIONS: If you have online access, please refer to the lesson available at the following link. https://sway.office.com/TRcYkCJvbVYhllB5?ref=Link
The online lessons provide more thorough and engaging examples of the concepts and activities. However, if you do not have online access, we want to be sure that students still receive the same information. Please read over the following lesson and complete the activities below with your child as best you can. Students using the online version can choose between the online “Exit Ticket,” the paper activities provided, or both.
LESSON REVIEW: In the first lesson, we talked about three different music classes you might find down the road when you go to middle school: Choir, Band and String Orchestra. We showed you how instruments are grouped into four different families. The groups are called "families" because all the instruments in that group share some things in common.
Today, we'd like to take a closer look at the brass family. If you have a chance to choose an instrument in middle school, you'll definitely need to know about the brass instruments. We want you to make an informed decision! So, we want you to know...
How do the brass instruments make their sounds? How are they different from each other? Which brass instrument do you like the best?
THE BRASS FAMILY: The Brass Family consists of 4 main instruments and are considered the muscle of the band. They don’t often get to play the melody, but provide a rich majestic sound. Brass instruments are an important part of military and marching bands because they are easily heard outdoors. Let’s take a closer look at each instrument on the next page.
Music 3rd-5th p. 2 The trumpet is the highest of the brass instruments, because it is also the smallest. All brass instruments make their sounds when the player’s lips vibrate. A brass player can even play a song without a mouthpiece, just by vibrating his or her lips. Try it! Shape your mouth like you are about to say a word that starts with the letter “p” like pop. Hold your lips in that shape. Then blow air through to make them vibrate.
The French horn is the second longest brass instrument. The player puts one hand on the valves and one hand sits inside the bell. Long ago, before valves were invented, the player changed pitch by covering up the bell with the right hand. You can also change pitch by sending more or less air through your lips.
The trombone is the only brass instrument that has a slide. The slide does exactly what you would guess. It slides, or glides, between pitches, as the player’s lips vibrate. The slide lets the trombone play glissandos. Glissandos sound like cars flying past you on the highway.
Finally, we get to the tuba. The tuba is the lowest, because it is the biggest. The tuba is the “basement” of the brass family and often provides the foundation for the entire band. Most tuba players sit when they play in order to hold the instrument for long periods of time. In marching band, tubists use a sousaphone that wraps around the shoulders. Without a tuba, a band sounds empty.
Music 3rd-5th p. 3 Name ______Class ______
UNDERSTANDING MUSIC: THE BRASS FAMILY
DIRECTIONS: Complete either the Exit Ticket in the online lesson or the questions below on paper. (Students can complete both the online and paper versions if they wish.) Please save your paper work.
1. What are the names of four brass instruments? ______
2. Which brass instrument uses a slide to change pitch? ______
3. Which brass instrument plays the lowest pitch? (Hint: It is also the biggest.) ______
4. What has to vibrate in order to make a sound in the mouthpiece? ______
5. If you play a brass instrument in middle school, which ensemble class should you take? ______
6. Which brass instrument are you most interested in playing? ______
Music 3rd-5th p. 4