Musical Instruments Families and Names

For the grade six music theory exam you need to know several facts about musical instruments. You will
need to know:
which are the standard instruments in each family, and which other instruments are commonly used
in a symphony orchestra
the names of the instruments in Italian, German and French, including the plural forms and
abbreviations you only need to be able to recognise the names, not give them!
what keys! transposing instruments are in, and how these keys are written in other languages
which instruments use a single or double reed to produce sound
what note each string is tuned to, for string instruments
"e#ll look at each of these points in turn.
a. Orchestral Families. $he orchestra is divided into four families, the woodwind, brass, percussion and
strings. $he main instruments and additional common orchestral instruments in each family are:
"oodwind % flute, oboe, clarinet and bassoon& plus piccolo, cor 'nglais, bass clarinet, (b clarinet and
contrabassoon.
)rass % trumpet, French horn, trombone and tuba& plus bass trombone
*ercussion % timpani, snare drum, bass drum, cymbals, triangle& plus tambourine, glockenspiel,
xylophone and gong
+trings % violin, viola, cello and double bass& plus harp
b. Instrument Names. ,any instrument names in Italian, German and French are -uite similar to the
(nglish % or close enough for you to be able to work out.
+ome of them are, on the other hand, completely different. $hese are the ones you need to memorise.
/ere are two tables of vocabulary % table 0 is 1(asy2 and table 3 is 14earn ,e.2
Table 1 Easy
English Italian German French
Flute Flauto Flote Flute
*iccolo Flauto piccolo 5leine flote *etite flute
6boe 6boe /oboe /autbois7
(nglish horn 8orno inglese (nglischhorn 8or anglais
8larinet 8larinetto 5larinette 8larinette
)ass clarinet 8larinetto basso )assklarinette 8larinette basse
/orn 8orno /orn 8or
$uba $uba $uba $uba
$riangle $riangolo $riangel $riangle
$ambourine $ambourino $amburin $ambour de )as-ue
9ylophone 9ilifono 9ylophon 9ylophone
Gong Gong Gong Gong
:iolin :iolino :ioline :iolon
8ello :ioloncello :ioloncello :ioloncello
;ouble bass 8ontrabasso or basso 5ontrabass 8ontrebass
7the 1h2 and the 1t2 are silent, so in fact this is pronounced 1obwa2.
$able 3 % 4earn ,e.
$he words in bold are the ones which are likely to cause confusion.
English Italian German French
)assoon Fagotto Fagott )asson
;ouble bassoon or
contrabassoon
Contrafagotto Kontrafagott 8ontrebasson
$rumpet Tromba77 $rompete $rompette
$rombone $rombone osaune $rombone
5ettle drums $impani au!en Timbales
+ide drum or snare
drum
Tamburo "iccolo Kleine Trommel Caisse claire
)ass drum Cassa or gran cassa Grosse Trommel Grosse caisse
8ymbals iatti or cinelli #ec!en 8ymbales
Glockenspiel Cam"anelli Glockenspiel $eu de timbres
:iola :iola #ratsche %lto
77 ;o not confuse $romba with $rombone.
Musical Instruments Trans"osing& 'eeds ( )trings
c. $ransposing Instruments. $he clarinet, cor 'nglais, trumpet and French horn are transposing instruments.
$he note which actually sounds at concert pitch when the player reads<plays the note 8 determines what
pitch the instrument is 1in2. For each of these instruments, the concert pitch note is lower than the written
note.
8larinets are usually in )b or '.
$he cor 'nglais is in F.
$he trumpet is usually in )b.
$he French horn is usually in F, and is sometimes found in (b.
In addition, you should note the following:
$he bass clarinet is in )b and sounds a ma=or >th lower than written one octave lower than the )b
clarinet!.
$here is a smaller version of the clarinet in (b, which sounds a minor ?rd higher than written.
$rumpets can be found in other keys, such as 8 non@transposing!, or ; sounding a ma=or second
higher than written!.
$he piccolo sounds one octave higher than written.
$he double bassoon sounds one octave lower than written.
$he most commonly used siAe of trombone is the 1tenor trombone2, which is sometimes called the )b
trombone. /owever, it is not treated as a transposing instrument in orchestral scores, and its notes
sound as written.
$he double bass sounds one octave lower than written.
You also need to know that the letter names we use for the notes '@G!, and the names 1sharp2 and 1flat2, are
translated in different ways.
English ' )b F (b ;
Italian*French 4a +i bemolle<bemol Fa ,i bemolle<bemol Be
German ' ) F (s ;
$he (nglish note ) is called / in German. C. +. )ach used to 1sign2 his manuscripts with the notes )@
'@8@/, which would be )b@'@8@) in (nglish.!
You may see 15larinette in )2 on a score % don#t forget that it means 1clarinet in )b2.
d. Beeds. $he oboe, cor 'nglais, clarinet and bassoon are reed instruments as are the larger<smaller
versions of these instruments!. $he clarinet uses a single reed, whereas the other instruments all use a
double reed.
e. 6pen +trings. "hen a string player plays a note without pressing a finger down anywhere on the string,
this is called an 1open note2. If the player touches the string, the vibrating length of the string is shortened
and the note produced is higher.
$he note produced by the open string is the lowest note possible on that string, and it is the note which the
string is tuned to.
You need to know what notes are produced on the open string for each of the four string instruments. You
might be asked, for example, to circle in a score a note which could be played on an open string. +o, you need
to know not only the letter name, but also which octave the note is in.
/ere are the notes which the string instrument strings are tuned to:
Dotice that the viola and cello are tuned to the same notes, except the cello is an octave lower.
Dotice that the violin, viola and cello are tuned in Eths, whereas the double bass is tuned in Fths.
;on#t forget that the double bass sounds an octave lower than written which is why we#ve put a little
G on the clef here!.
It might help you to remember these tunings if you notice that the double bass strings are the same as
the violin#s in reverse order.
/ere is a list of terms, organised into groups. /owever, it#s almost impossible to make a 1complete2 list of
terms for this level.
,ake sure you also know everything listed under grade five.
'lways check the meaning of any new term you come across when you are playing music.
1+ Tem"o from ,ery slo- to ,ery fast
Italian
Larghissimo :ery, very slow Andantino 't a moderate walking pace
Grave +low and solemn Moderato ,oderately
Lento +lowly Allegretto ,oderately fast
Largo )roadly Allegro Fast and bright
Larghetto Bather broadly Vivace Fast and lively
Adagio +low and stately Vivacissimo :ery fast and lively
Adagietto Bather slow Presto :ery fast
Andante 't a walking pace Prestissimo (xtremely fast
French
Grave +lowly and solemnly Rapide Fast
Lent +lowly Vif 4ively
Modere ,oderately Vite Fast
German
Langsam +lowly Lebhaft 4ively
Massig ,oderately Rasch Huickly
Bewegt 'nimated Schnell Fast
.+ Changes in tem"o
Italian
Accelerando +peeding up Allargando Growing broader
Doppio movimento $wice as fast Calando Going slower
Pi mosso ,ore movement Meno mosso 4ess movement
Precipitando /urrying Rallentando Gradually slowing
Stretto In a faster tempo Ritardando +lowing
Stringendo *ressing on faster Ritento +lightly slower
French
Pls vite Faster Moins vite 4ess fast
/+ Mood
Italian
Affettoso "ith feeling Lamentoso ,ournfully
Agitato 'gitated Leggero 4ightly
Appassionato *assionately Maestoso ,a=estically
Animato 'nimated Malinconico ,elancholically
Brillante +parkling Marcato ,arked
Bravra )roadly Mar!iale In a march style
Cantabile In a singing style Mesto +adly
Dolce +weetly Morendo ;ying
"nergico (nergetically #obilmente Dobly
"roico /eroically Patetico "ith emotion
"spressivo (xpressively Pesante /eavily
$rioso 'ngrily Saltando Cumpingly
Giocoso ,errily Scher!ando *layfully
Gioioso Coyfully Sostento +ustained
Grandioso Grandly %enere!!a $enderness
Gra!ioso Gracefully %ran&illamente 8almly
Lacrimoso +adly %rionfante $riumphantly
0+ #o-ing 1irections
$here are a lot of different ways a string player can use a bow.
$he more common bowing instructions should be learnt for grade six music theory:
Arco "ith the bow
Spiccato )ounce the bow
Sl ponticello *lay near the bridge
Con sordino "ith the mute
Ip bow
Col legno "ith the wood of the bow
%remolo ,ove the bow up and down extremely fast
Pi!!icato *luck the strings
Sen!a sordino "ithout the mute
;own bow
2+ Other )ymbols
$he following symbols also need to be learnt:
%r"eggio broken chord!. $he lowest note is played first, followed by the
second, third etc, in -uick succession.
Tremolo rapidly repeated note!. +hort diagonal lines across the stem of a
note show that it should be rapidly repeated. $remolos can be found with
one, two or three short lines % the more lines, the faster the tremolo.
Glissando or "ortamento rapidly play the notes between the two
notated!. $his is sometimes seen in piano or trombone music. $he musician
plays all the notes in between the two notated notes as fast as possible.
In grade six music theory, you will probably be asked to identify a chord or two. $his might be in a piano
score, or it could be part of a larger ensemble, in which case the notes you need to focus on are usually
pinpointed for you.
You#ll be asked to identify the chord by name, state its position, say whether it is ma=or, minor, augmented or
diminished, and you may also have to name the prevailing key.
;on#t forget to double check the key signature and clef of any instruments used in the chord. If one of the
instruments is a transposing instrument, you#ll need to work out what note is actually sounding at concert
pitch.
In this section of the exam, you might come across seventh chords. "e will discuss these in a moment. First
though, let#s revise the basics of chords.
Chord Names
8hords can be named in three basic ways.
)y letter name, e.g. 18 ma=or2.
)y Boman numeral e.g. I or i. In order to use the Boman numeral system, you need to know what the
prevailing key of the music is. Bemember that the prevailing key is the key at that point in the music.
8apital letters are used for ma=or chords, and lower case letters for minor chords.
'ugmented chords are written in capital letters with the symbol J e.g. IIIJ! and diminished chords
are written in lower case with the symbol K e.g. viiK!.
)y technical name e.g. 1dominant2 or 1diminished supertonic2. $he technical names of the degrees of
the scale are:
tonic 314& su"ertonic 3.4& mediant 3/4& subdominant 304& dominant 324& submediant 354& leading note 364+
'gain, you need to know the prevailing key of the music in order to use this system.
Ma7or& Minor& 1iminished& %ugmented and )e,enth Chords
8hords which have three different notes in them can be ma=or, minor, augmented or diminished. $o find out
what type of chord you#ve got, put the notes together as closely as you can % you should have three notes
which are a third apart % a triad.
For example, this score has a chord built with four notes, but only three of them are different:
$he cello has 8L, the viola has ', the second violin has (, and the
first violin has '. $his means we have three notes: 8L, ' and (. If
we stack them in thirds, they look like this:
$he bottom note is the chord#s name % this is a chord of '.
Dext, calculate the exact interval between the lowest and middle, and then middle and top notes.
For example, '@8L is a ma=or third. 8L to ( is a minor third. $he pattern ma=orJminor means the chord is a
ma=or chord. $here are four possible patterns of triads:
,a=orJminorMma=or chord
,inorJma=orMminor chord
,a=orJma=orMaugmented chord
,inorJminorMdiminished chord
' ma=or third is E semitones, and a minor third is F semitones!.
/ere are some examples.
If there are four different notes in the chord, it will be a triad plus the seventh in the grade six exam! % the
note which is an interval of a minor seventh above the root its lowest note!.
In the grade six music theory exam, seventh chords are restricted to the dominant seventh and the
supertonic seventh in ma=or and minor keys!.
In chord 0, the key is 8 ma=or. $he dominant chord in 8 chord :! is G ma=or. $he note which is a minor
seventh above G is F. +o, G ma=or plus F at the top is the dominant Nth of 8 ma=or.
In chord ?, the key is ' minor. $he dominant is ( ma=or, and ; is a minor Nth above (. +o ( ma=or plus ; is
the dominant Nth of ' minor.
Dotice that dominant Nth chords are always built on a ma=or triad, even when in a minor key. $his is because
the leading note is sharpened.
In,ersions
You will remember from grade five music theory that all chords can be inverted. $hree@note chords have
three possible positions:
Boot position or OaO!
First inverion ObO!
+econd inversion OcO!
4ook at the lowest note of the triad. $his is the bass note. If there are several instruments playing the chord,
you#ll need to look carefully to see which one has the lowest note.! Find out whether the bass note is the
root, third or fifth of the chord.
$he root is the fundamental note of the triad.
$he third is a third higher than the root.
$he fifth is a fifth higher than the root.
Boot in bass M root position
$hird in bass M first inversion
Fifth in bass M second inversion
8hords with four notes have four possible inversions:
Boot in bass M root position OaO!
$hird in bass M first inversion ObO!
Fifth in bass M second inversion OcO!
+eventh in bass M third inversion OdO!
Grade +ix ,usic $heory, 4esson Pb. @ Identifying 8hords in a +core
4et#s now look at some real life examples of chords in scores.
$his is a chord from ,endelssohn#s 1' ,idsummer Dight#s ;ream2, played by the woodwind and horn.
"e will examine the chord marked by the box.
$he prevailing key is ) ma=or. You need to see a bit more of the score to work that out for yourself, so =ust
take our word for it for now.!
First, write down the letter names of all the notes which are sounding at concert pitch!.
Flute: ), ;L
8larinet: ), FL
)assoon Fag.!: ;L, FL
/orn 8or!: ), )
$he flute and bassoon parts are easy in this extract. Generally flute parts will always be easy, but make sure
you are comfortable reading the tenor clef for bassoon parts. )assoon parts often switch clef from bass to
tenor in most cases!, so watch out.
$here is no oboe contribution in this extract. 6boes are easy instruments to read! too, as they also play at
concert pitch.
$he clarinet part is a little harder. 8larinets come in many siAes, with the )b, ' and (b being the most
common. It#s not unknown to find a part for clarinet in 8 i.e. non@transposing! either. In this case, we know
that the clarinet must be a transposing instrument, because it#s using a different key signature. )ut is it a
clarinet in ', )b or something elseQ
+tart by looking at the key signatures in use. $he clarinet is using a key signature of G ma=or, whereas the
non@transposing instruments have ( ma=or. $his means the written notes are a minor third higher because
(@G is a minor third!. +o, a written G in the clarinet part e-uals a concert pitch (. 'll the notes in the clarinet
part sound a minor third lower than written.
,ake sure you understand this concept, because sometimes the excerpts don#t mention which kind of
clarinet is being used, and with instruments like the cor 'nglais the transposing pitch is not usually written
because it#s always the same cors 'nglais are always in F!.
You can also remember the phrase 18 that you see M concert pitch key2 to help you.
For example:
8 that you see M
concert pitch )b on the )b clarinet
concert pitch F on the horn in F
concert pitch ; on the trumpet in ;
etc.
$he horn part is also transposed. /ere, you are told that the horn is in (. You will always be told the specific
transposition for a horn or trumpet part, because, traditionally, brass parts are often written with no key
signature. )ecause 8 horn part! M ( concert pitch!, you need to transpose the notes up a ma=or third. $he
written G is a concert pitch ).
"ith brass instruments, you can#t work out the transposition from the key signature as was done with the
clarinet above! if the key signature is left out.
+o, we have the notes ), FL and ;L. *ut together, they make the triad of ) ma=or.
$he lowest note is in the bassoon part % FL. $herefore, this is a second inversion chord.
$he full description is: 1$onic chord of ) ma=or I! in the second inversion.2
/ere#s another chord from later in the same piece, this time played by the string section:
$his time, we can also work out the prevailing key.
$he key signature of two flats means we should start by assuming the key is either )b ma=or or G minor. $he
double bass plays G@;@G@; in the first two bars, which would be the root of the tonic and dominant triads in
G minor G minor and ; ma=or!. In the fourth bar however, ) natural and ' flat are introduced % and they
appear again in the Pth bar. In the Nth bar there is an ' natural. If we look at the notes in use from the Fth@
Nth bars! and lay them out in order, they are:
'b % ' % ) % 8 % ; % (b % F % G
$hese are the notes of the 8 minor melodic scale. $he 'b appears in the descending scale, and the ' natural
and ) natural are in the ascending scale. 't this point then, the prevailing key of the music is 8 minor.
Dext, we can see that the notes of the chord are 8, (b and G. $hese are the notes of the tonic chord i! in 8
minor.
Finally, we check the lowest note of the chord, to work out what position it#s in. ;on#t forget that double
basses are transposing instruments at the octave, so the note you see written actually sounds an octave
lower. It doesn#t make any difference here, because it#s the lowest notated note anyway, but that isn#t always
the case!. $he lowest note of the chord is (b, which is the third of the chord.
+o, this chord is a 1tonic, first inversion minor chord in the prevailing key of 8 minor2.
's you can see, identifying chords at this level re-uires knowing more than =ust how chords work. ,ake sure
you are super confident about
which instruments transpose and at what interval
reading the alto and tenor clefs
working out the prevailing key
Ornaments
You need to know the same ornaments as you learnt for grade five music theory. $he added twist for grade
six is that you also have to be able to write them out in full, as they would be played.
6rnament symbols were added to music for several reasons. $hey allow some freedom of interpretation,
they cut down printing costs, and they allow the basic structure of the music to be more visible.
"e#ll examine each ornament in turn.
Dote that if there is a small accidental written with the ornament, you#ll need to add that accidental when the
ornament is written out in full too. +ee the turn for an example!.
The trill
$he trill or 1shake2! is a rapid alternation between the note written called the 1principal2 note!, and the
note above. $rills can be very tricky to write out indeed, as the way they are interpreted has always been
very sub=ective and the rules have changed over time. $ry to keep to the following basic rules, however:
$he trill can start on the note itself or the note above. In earlier music up to about 0GRR! the trill
usually started on the note above, after 0GRR it starts on the note itself.
$he trill is most often written out in semi-uavers or demisemi-uavers. $he number of notes you need
depends on the length of the written note. For example, a crotchet will need G demisemi-uavers.
)eam the demisemi-uavers in subdivisions of fours, to make them easier on the eye see the first
example below!.
+ometimes a trill is preceded by an acciaccatura % this means you should start the trill on the
acciaccatura note.
$he trill should end on the principal note. $his means you might have to add a triplet figure at the
end.
In this first example, the trill starts on the higher note because it is imaginary! )ach pre@0GRR!.
In this later fictitious! example ,endelssohn was born in 0GR>!, the trill starts on the principal note. '
triplet is added at the end, so that the trill also finishes on the principal note.
The turn
$he turn consists of four notes: the note above, the principal note, the note below, the principal note again.
$urns can be performed after the written note, or instead of it, depending on where they are written.
' turn written directly above a note replaces that note. ' turn written after the note should be
performed after the note is sounded.
$urns can be written using any note value which is basically fast.
$he first example here is from a piano +onata by )eethoven. $he turn is written after the note, so we play the
)b first, then the turn.
It can be tricky working out what values to write for each note. $he )b is a dotted -uaver, and we need to
s-ueeAe five notes into the same space. "e can break the dotted -uaver down into three semi-uavers, then
put a triplet into the middle semi-uaver beat.
$he next example comes later in the same piece. $his time the turn is directly above the note, so it starts on
the 8. In this case, the four notes of the turn are divided e-ually into the semi-uaver beat.
The mordent
$here are two kinds of mordent % the lower mordent, and the upper mordent. $he mordent consists of three
notes.
$he lower mordent starts on the principal, then the note below, then the principal again.
$he upper mordent is the same pattern, but using the note above the principal.
/ere are some general guidelines:
$he ornament starts on the beat itself not after!
$he first two notes are played very -uickly, and the third note is sustained for longer.
$he lower mordent symbol has a short line through the middle. $hink 14ineM4ower2!.
$his bar is taken from an 'ria by /andel. $he lower mordent includes an accidental sharp, which means the
8 must be sharpened. $he ; is a crotchet, so we can give a -uarter of its value to the mordent itself, and then
have a dotted -uaver left over for the sustained principal note.
$here are no hard and fast rules about what note values to write, but notice here that semi-uavers are
common in the music already. $he mordent should be -uicker than any note values already commonly used.
$his upper mordent appears in a +onatina by )enda a 8Aech 0Gth century violinist and composer!. Dotice
here that the pace is calmer than in the previous example, with -uavers and crotchets in use.
$he mordent can be performed with semi-uavers demisemi-uavers would be ok too!.
The acciaccatura
"hen an acciaccatura is performed, the principal note remains on the beat and the ornament is s-ueeAed in
beforehand. $he ornaments usually consist of =ust two notes % the 1crushed2 note and the principal note.
+ometimes, though, you might find two or more notes in an acciaccatura % in which case they will all have to
be s-ueeAed in before the beat.
'cciaccaturas are notated with a small@siAe -uaver with a slash through the tail.
'cciaccaturas are performed very -uickly.
's the principal note falls on the beat, the acciaccatura has to 1steal2 its time from the previous note.
In this example from a )agatelle by )eethoven, the acciaccatura FL has to steal some time from the ; before
it, so that the ( -uaver remains on the beat.
"rite the acciaccatura with a semi-uaver or demisemi-uaver, then work out how much of the previous note
is left.
The a""oggiatura
'n appoggiatura is written with small@siAe notes. In contrast to the acciaccatura, the appoggiatura falls on
the beat, not before it.
'n appoggiatura can be one or more notes.
$he notation of the appoggiatura shows you which note length to use.
$he appoggiatura does not have a slash through its tail.
In this example, from an 'llegro by *ergolesi an 0Gth century Italian composer!, the appoggiatura is
notated with a -uaver.
"e use the same value when writing it out, and reduce the following G to a -uaver too.