Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra

THE INSTRUMENTS OF AN ORCHESTRA

Since the early years of the 20th century the orchestra has been arranged with the first and second violins to the left of the conductor. The violas, in turn, are seated next to them. Traditionally, the cellos are situated to the conductor’s right, with double basses behind them. Although the MPO adheres to this pattern, it's not necessarily follwed by all orchestras or conductors. Indeed, other seating plans are also adopted depending on the repertoire and the composer’s directions.

As the name implies, the four members of this family comprise a hollow tube made of metal (usually brass). All these instruments require the players to make a buzzing noise with their lips into a small mouthpiece which then vibrates along the length of the tube. The tubes are narrow at the mouthpiece end and open out to a larger bell out of which the amplified sound emerges.

“The quality of tone of the trumpet is noble and brilliant” (Hector Berlioz 1803-1869)

The first metal trumpets were made in Egypt well over 2000 years ago and not much has changed since then. Modern trumpets have three or four valves, operated by finger pistons along the top of the instrument, which allow the player to produce the full range of chromatic notes. Sometimes the trumpeters in the MPO use smaller trumpets in order to play much higher pitches.