> The fundamental pitch of a brass instrument, on the other hand, is considered to be the fundamental of the harmonic series it plays when no valves are being used.
For those who don't know how brass instruments work (and wonder how you can produce so many pitches with so little valves) this may sound a little confusing (a lot of people asked me, so I'll assume some people don't know).
I'll take a trumpet as an example, as it is the instrument I'm most familiar with.
First of all, you don't just blow air inside the instrument: you buzz your lips, as if you were making a sort of fart sound without using your tongue. Depending on the speed your lips vibrate at, you are able to make a series of pitches, which ones basically depend on the length of the instruments. The pitches you can make are part of an harmonic series, so basically (transposed from Bb) C, G, C, E, G and so on.
Pressing the valves changes the length of the tubing so you can lower the note you're playing by a half step (middle, or second, valve), one step (rear or first valve) or one and a half step (forward or third valve). So by combining them you can obtain all the other pitches you may need.
For example, suppose your lips are buzzing at a (written) G. You press the middle valve and get a F#, you press the first valve and you get an F, first and second (or just third) gives an E, second and third Eb, first and third D, all the valves Db, then you can vibrate your lips at a lower rate and release all the valves to get a C.
Because the instruments have three valves, they are essentially a variable-length tube with a three-bit interface for choosing the length - so there are eight possible configurations, and two of them happen to result in the same tube length so there are seven selectable lengths.
So if the length is set to “C” (that is, no valves pressed) and your lips buzz at “G” then you will be playing a “G”.
I would guess that it doesn't work well unless the note you are buzzing resonates with the instrument (it is (even) harder to do, does not sound clear?)
I've found it hard to produce a non-fundamental pitch. I mean, I'm not a very good player, but the best I can do is bend the note by a semi-tone or a bit more, then it goes straight to the other fundamental.
Like the sibling says, it’s actually quite hard to do that! I’m not a professional player so take my explanation with a grain of salt, but the resonance of the instrument seems to ensure you stick to one of the fundamentals. Now that I think about it, it’s quite hard to explain, but it just seems to… work?
Kind of. Remember that the valves are providing a linear approximation of a logarithmic relationship. So the third valve is usually tuned to a flat 1.5 steps to be used primarily in combination with valves 1 and 2 to ease intonation problems.
While G and C have the same tube length, I think you wanted to ask "What happens when you buzz your lips for a note that doesn't match the length of tube?"
So, for example, a C and a D on a trumpet are different lengths. Basically: you don't get a note, or you get a funny sound. The trumpet doesn't resonate and it's very difficult to get your lips to buzz at the "wrong" note.
Some very good players who have great lip control can bend a note up and down like this for effect.
Poor amateurs like myself will often buzz not perfectly at the right tension and play slightly out of tune.
Can you also explain the army bugler’s instrument with no valves (and thus a single tube length)? Seems they have a wide variety of melodies to play on such a limited instrument.
All the tunes use a single harmonic series. The bugle is a 1/4 stub transforming the impedance of the open air to the impedance of the lips. This will work at 3/8, etc, so multiple frequencies are available.
Re: First of all, you don't just blow air inside the instrument: you buzz your lips, as if you were making a sort of fart sound without using your tongue.
The dirty secret of brass instruments. I wonder if they could make a direct air-powered vibrator so that one doesn't have to torture their lips. It may also make life easier for amateurs. I imagine it may result in loss of control for subtle effects, but some amateurs will accept that.
Assuming you play a brass instrument, I suggest to try this experiment: Blow air through your lips and purse then together, but do NOT buzz. Basically the "buzzing" without the buzz. When you do that, continue to and press your lips against the mouthpiece. You will make a note!
This was something my instructor showed me because use way too much of my lips when I play (a very common mistake with amateurs), and a lot of the power you use should be through your diaphragm (large versus small muscles).
You'd end up with more or less a reed instrument. It's actually possible to get some notes out of a brass instrument using a woodwind reed, albeit that it's not easy and doesn't seem to be able to produce more than a very limited range:
> I wonder if they could make a direct air-powered vibrator so that one doesn't have to torture their lips.
This fact is, imho, a motivating principle behind the genesis of various synthesizer designs and concepts. We synthesists wish we could do this stuff with our mouths, but the LFO's and the VCO's and the various and sundry other oscillating things represented in the electronic musical instrument world, can't blow a farts worth in comparison to a good trumpeter...
For those who don't know how brass instruments work (and wonder how you can produce so many pitches with so little valves) this may sound a little confusing (a lot of people asked me, so I'll assume some people don't know).
I'll take a trumpet as an example, as it is the instrument I'm most familiar with.
First of all, you don't just blow air inside the instrument: you buzz your lips, as if you were making a sort of fart sound without using your tongue. Depending on the speed your lips vibrate at, you are able to make a series of pitches, which ones basically depend on the length of the instruments. The pitches you can make are part of an harmonic series, so basically (transposed from Bb) C, G, C, E, G and so on.
Pressing the valves changes the length of the tubing so you can lower the note you're playing by a half step (middle, or second, valve), one step (rear or first valve) or one and a half step (forward or third valve). So by combining them you can obtain all the other pitches you may need.
For example, suppose your lips are buzzing at a (written) G. You press the middle valve and get a F#, you press the first valve and you get an F, first and second (or just third) gives an E, second and third Eb, first and third D, all the valves Db, then you can vibrate your lips at a lower rate and release all the valves to get a C.
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