Wind Instruments

In the context of musical performance, air instruments are imaginary musical instruments for which people mimic sound-producing gestures in the air without touching a real instrument. In simple words, air instruments are musical instruments that could be played without touching the real instrument. Air instruments include:

Air guitar – for electric guitar or acoustic guitar;

Air bass – for bass guitar

Air drums – for snare drums, bongos or bass drum, or most commonly air drum set often with double bass pedals

Air keyboards – such as air piano for piano

Air violin – for violin or cello

Air flute – for flute (or piccolo)

Air xylophone – for the xylophone

Air trumpet – for trumpet (as opposed to car/boat air trumpet horns)

Air trombone – for trombone

There are other air instruments as well.

Origins

The playing of air Instruments has been documented through the 20^th century (see: Air guitar). However, no sources have been found that exclude the playing of air instruments in ancient times, during private performances, such as for air flute or air lyre (for lyres or harps). One gesture musical instrument which won first place in the 2008 Chicago Makers Faire at the Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry is an instrument named Airheads that demonstrates the ability to simulate different musical instruments using only your hand gestures moving in the air.

Air piano

For the air piano, both left and right hands can be used and move the feet to mimic pressing the piano floor pedals. Besides the imaginary air piano, there is a motion-activated musical instrument interface called an "Air Piano" which is controlled by waving the hands above the top. The Air Piano is a musical computer interface (from 2007) that allows playing and controlling software instruments simply by moving hands in the air over the device, connected by USB cable. Above the Air, Piano is an invisible matrix of virtual keys plus faders, each pre-assigned with MIDI messages and triggered via infrared sensors. The length of each triggered note is determined by the time the hand is placed over the corresponding virtual key. Beyond the feedback of the sounds changing, hand placement is also confirmed by LED feedback. The first version of Air Piano generated polyphonic sound, with 24 keys using 8 faders. The Air Piano software provides for the loading/saving of presets and transposing notes. The Air Piano technique has been filed as a Provisional U.S. Patent Application (60/989,986).

Air violin

Besides the gestures to accompany real violin performances, playing the air violin can also be a form of sarcasm, to indicate that another person seems to be rambling with a sob story or whining excessively, in self-pity.

The production of sound

Tubes used to produce a musical sound may be cylindrical, conical, or some combination of the two. They may also be straight or curved. Regardless of the material used, their interior surface must be smooth for the best results. The relation of the tube length to diameter varies widely but must remain within certain practical limits to produce musical pitches. The air contained within the tube is set into vibration by the breath or in some cases a bellows, acting upon a sound-generating device. The pressure exerted against the molecules of air in the tube causes the particles to move forward along the tube until they bump into others, setting them in motion while they first bounce back. This process creates regular pulsations producing sound waves. Throughout the sounding length of the tube, the entire wave moves at the speed of sound. The air itself moves only slowly, and the phenomenon has been compared to the starting of a freight train, in which the first burst of energy from the engine jerks the car behind, which in turn passes the impulse to the car behind it, and so on throughout the length of the train. The impact of the cars also produces a reverse pressure as it moves along. Similarly, at the sounding length of the tube, the waves are reflected upon themselves, creating a counter-pressure that forms nodes and antinodes in a standing, or stationary, wave. The node results from interference between the forward and the reverse forces creating a static point; the antinode is the point of freest vibration in the sound wave. Antinodes always occur at the open ends of a tube. In its simplest form, a node (N) is created at the exact middle between the two antinodes (A) at each end of the vibrating length.

Classification

Wind instruments exhibit great diversity in structure and sonority and have been prominent in the music of all cultures since prehistoric times. A system of classification of these instruments must reflect and categorize the relationships and the differences between the many varieties. The conventional division of the symphony orchestra into sections has simplified the grouping of wind instruments into woodwinds and brasses, but this is an inaccurate classification that generally does not apply outside Western culture. The fact that some modern woodwinds, such as flutes and saxophones, are made of metal whereas several ancestors of present-day brasses, such as the cornet and the serpent, were typically made of wood illustrates the unsuitability of classification according to the material.

Top 10 Wind Instruments

Musical Instruments provide fun and entertainment. A wind instrument is such a beautiful instrument that works with the flow of air. Though it sounds easy, many wind instruments are difficult to learn and depend on many factors. Every region has a different type of instrument that has unique features. Wind instruments list is so long, but few among those are the popular ones and a little bit easy to learn such as flute, trumpet, etc. You can always go for a harmonica for beginners to start with. It is easy and portable. Now, are you thinking about what a wind instrument is and what are the types? Here, in this article, we have explained to you about it. Also, we have explained how brass instrument works do as well as how does woodwind instruments work. Also, the article mentions things to be considered while buying any wind instrument.

Additionally, we have mentioned a few FAQs and our top 10 picks of the wind instrument. At the end of this article you will be clear with all the types of wind instruments mentioned, Do’s and Don’ts of wind instruments, and buyers guide, so you get to know factors to note before purchasing any wind instrument.

Do’s and Don’ts of Air Instruments/ Wind Instruments

1. Always wash your hands before playing the instrument
2. Never clean the instrument with alcohol-based solutions
3. Never clean the instrument by immersing in water
4. Always fine-tune the instrument using screws
5. Never repair the instruments on your own. Always meet the concerned person to handle the repairs
6. Always go for a soft cloth to clean the exterior instrument
7. Always clean the instrument after playing it