How Brass Instruments Work

How are vibrations produced in brass instruments?

• By striking the instrument
• By blowing air against a reed or sharp edge
• Directly from the musician's mouth
• By plucking or bowing the strings

What is the first thing a brass player must learn?

• To play a specific note
• To blow enough air to force their lips open
• To breathe in deeply
• To hold their lips firmly closed

What is the vibration created by the musician's lips called?

• The whistle
• The buzz
• The hum
• The chirp

What is the limited pattern of pitches that forms when sound waves travel through a brass instrument's air column called?

• The melodic series
• The harmonic series
• The tonal series
• The rhythmic series

How can a musician alter the pitch of a note on a brass instrument?

• By plucking the strings faster
• By blowing harder against the reed or sharp edge
• By striking the instrument harder
• By slight contractions of the lips and alterations to air volume and speed

What produces lower pitches in the harmonic series?

• Slower, warm sighing air
• A shorter instrument length
• Faster, cool, flowing air
• A longer instrument length

What produces higher pitches in the harmonic series?

• A longer instrument length
• Faster, cool, flowing air
• Slower, warm sighing air
• A shorter instrument length

How does lengthening the tube of a brass instrument affect its pitch?

• It changes the type of vibration produced
• It has no effect on the frequency of vibrations
• It increases the frequency of vibrations
• It reduces the frequency of vibrations

What is the largest brass instrument?

• The trombone
• The tuba
• The trumpet
• The French horn

How can brass musicians switch between multiple harmonic series?

• By blowing harder
• By extending the slide on a trombone or lowering valves on a trumpet
• By changing the shape of the mouthpiece
• By using a different mouthpiece