Trumpet: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 23:23, 24 February 2004

Revision as of 10:56, 10 March 2004

Line 9:

</td></tr></table>

The trumpet is made of [[brass]] bent into a rough [[spiral]]. Although the bore of the trumpet is said to be mostly [[cylinder|cylindrical]], it is formed from a complex series of tapers, the smallest being at the mouthpiece receiver, and the largest being at the throat of the bell, before the flare for the bell begins. (Careful design of these tapers is critical to the [[tuning|intonation]] of the instrument.) [[Sound]] is produced by blowing air through the lips so as to produce a "buzzing" effect, which creates a [[standing wave]] of vibrating air in the trumpet. The trumpet player can select the [[pitch (music)|pitch]] from a range of [[overtonesovertone]]s or [[harmonics]] by changing the air speed and lip tension. [[valve|Valves]] change the length of the tubing, lowering the [[pitch (music)|pitch]] of the instrument. Three valves make the trumpet fully [[chromatic]], allowing the player to play in all keys.

The [[mouthpiece]] provides a comfortable receiver to allow the lips to play without touching the sharp and restricting edge of the trumpet's tube itself. The sound is projected outward by the [[bell]].