[Orchestra] A List of Instruments Played in an Orchestra: Introduced by Category
Have you ever actually gone to listen to an orchestra perform? I’m sure many people have heard recordings, but there may not be that many who have actually listened in a concert hall.
However, surely everyone has at least seen videos of an orchestra performance, right? Rows of string, woodwind, brass, and percussion instruments are truly overwhelming to behold.
In this article, we’ll introduce all the instruments played in an orchestra at once! We’ll go through each section—strings, woodwinds, brass, percussion, and other auxiliary instruments—so if there’s a particular instrument you want to learn more about, please take your time and have a close look.
- A comprehensive list of instruments that shine in wind bands, introduced by category
- [Orchestra] Introducing famous and popular pieces
- [Masterpiece Classics] A special showcase of gem-like masterpieces so beautiful they’ll move you to tears
- Cool classical masterpieces. Recommended classical music.
- [For Instrument Beginners] Recommended Instruments for the School Concert Band: Flute, Trombone, and Trumpet Edition
- [Quartet] Masterpieces and Popular Pieces for String Quartet
- Classical Masterpieces: Recommended Works You Should Hear at Least Once
- Recommended pieces for a wind band contest
- Masterpieces of Ballet Music: Introducing Classic Favorites
- To you who are thinking about quitting the brass band club: You shouldn’t quit for reasons like these.
- [Violin] Recommended practice pieces for violin beginners. Famous pieces you’ll want to try playing.
- [Fight songs and marches included] Moving songs you want to hear at the Spring High School Baseball Tournament
- A classic brass band medley
Brass instruments (1–10)
trombone
The trombone is said to share the same origins as the trumpet.
Instead of valves like a trumpet, it changes pitch by extending and retracting a tube called the slide.
This slide can sometimes make the pitch less precise, but by performing glissando—a technique of sliding smoothly from one note to another—it can produce a distinctive nuance.
Known as the instrument of God and often used in churches, the trombone began to be used in orchestras after Beethoven employed it in a symphony for the first time.
Percussion (1–10)
snare drum
These percussion instruments play a major role in concert band and marching settings.
In orchestral ensembles, they serve an important function as rhythm instruments, propelling the performance forward.
They are used particularly effectively in Maurice Ravel’s Boléro, where the snare drum sustains the rhythm throughout and takes center stage.
They also deliver lively, bright rhythms in the iconic opening “20th Century Fox Fanfare” heard at the start of films, and in the theme “Overture” from the beloved RPG series Dragon Quest.
glockenspiel
This instrument is the glockenspiel.
It’s played by striking metal bars with mallets, and many people may be familiar with it because the tetsukin (metalophone) is sometimes used in instrumental ensembles in elementary school music classes.
It’s commonly called “glocken,” but in German, Glocken means “bells” and Spiel means “play/playing.” In English it’s also sometimes referred to as the “orchestral bells.” With its high register and a tone that carries even when played softly, it’s an instrument whose sound you can savor when listening to an orchestral concert.
xylophone
One of the percussion instruments in the orchestra with a charming tone is the xylophone.
It is played by striking wooden bars with mallets, and because it’s also used in elementary school ensemble classes, it’s commonly known as the wooden keyboard percussion instrument.
In the orchestra, it is used frequently, and you can hear it prominently in the “Sabre Dance” from Aram Khachaturian’s ballet Gayane.
Since “Sabre Dance” is sometimes played as BGM at elementary and junior high school sports days, many people have likely heard the xylophone’s timbre without even realizing it.
tambourine
The tambourine, which is used even in elementary school music classes, naturally plays a major role in the orchestra as well.
A tambourine is an extremely shallow, small, single-headed drum with tiny cymbals attached to its frame, and in the orchestra you can chiefly hear its timbre in pieces like the Trepak from Tchaikovsky’s ballet The Nutcracker.
Among orchestral instruments, the tambourine may seem like something anyone could strike, but its allure as a percussion instrument is profound.
Listening to the performances of Ryusuke Oishi, renowned as a dedicated tambourine player, will surely surprise you with the breadth of the tambourine’s tones, varieties, and techniques.
Triangle
In an orchestral performance, the cute, tinkling metallic sound “chirin-rin” comes from this percussion instrument—the triangle.
You hang the top of the instrument by a string on a dedicated stand and strike the triangle with a small metal beater.
While it often handles a single crucial note that changes the character of the music, there are also performances that give a beat to the entire piece, such as the Prelude to Act I from Carmen and the orchestral arrangement of Final Fantasy VIII’s battle theme, “Don’t Be Afraid.” Though it’s a familiar percussion instrument that’s active in ensemble playing at kindergartens, nursery schools, and elementary schools, it’s an important instrument that adds brilliance to an ensemble.
timpani
When it comes to the timpani, it’s arguably one of the star instruments among the percussion section in an orchestra.
A membrane is stretched over a hemispherical shell, and the pitch can be changed by adjusting the tension of the head with a pedal.
Compared to the snare drum or bass drum, it is a pitched percussion instrument with a clearly defined pitch.
The modern timpani is said to trace its roots to an instrument called the “lilis” used in Mesopotamian civilization, dating back to around 2000 BCE.
Later, through use in Turkish military bands, it evolved into the form used in orchestras today.