Musical instrument

A musical instrument is a device made to create musical sounds. Any object that makes sound can be a musical instrument when it is used for that purpose. A person who plays a musical instrument is called an instrumentalist.

The history of musical instruments goes back to the start of human culture. Early instruments might have been used for special events, like a horn to show success after a hunt or a drum in a ceremony. Later, people made melodies for fun. Instruments changed over time with new uses and technology.

It is hard to know exactly when the first musical instrument was made. The oldest known instrument is a simple flute, about 50,000–60,000 years old. Some think early flutes are about 40,000 years old. Many experts say we cannot know the exact date because early instruments were made from animal skins, bone, wood, and other things that bio-degradable. Some believe lithophones, or stones used to make music found at Sankarjang in India, were also early instruments.

Musical instruments appeared in many parts of the world on their own. But when people from different places met, they shared and adapted instruments. By the post-classical era, instruments from Mesopotamia were in maritime Southeast Asia, and Europeans played instruments from North Africa. In the Americas, instrument development was slower, but cultures in Central and South America shared instruments.

By 1400, the development of musical instruments slowed in many places and was led by the Occident. During the Classical and Romantic periods, from about 1750 to 1900, many new instruments were made. In the 20th century, while traditional instruments changed little, new electric and electronic instruments were invented, such as electric guitars, synthesizers, and the theremin.

Classifying musical instruments is a special area of study. Instruments can be grouped by their range, material, size, or use. The most common way, Hornbostel–Sachs, groups them by how they make sound. The study of musical instruments is called organology.

Definition and basic operation

A musical instrument is something we use to make musical sounds. Long ago, people used objects to make music instead of just using their voices. Early instruments were made to copy natural sounds. People played them in special ceremonies.

For example, someone might play a bone flute to signal the start of a hunt.

People play instruments in many ways, like plucking the strings of a string instrument, hitting a drum, or blowing into a horn. Instruments come in many shapes and sizes and can be made from many different materials.

Archaeology

Researchers have found clues to old musical instruments all over the world. One famous find is the Divje Babe flute, which might be very old, but scientists aren't sure if it was really made to make music. Most agree that instruments from about 37,000 years ago are the earliest we know for sure.

Early humans likely used things like wood and animal skin to make instruments, but these materials often didn't last over time.

Flutes

The Divje Babe Flute is a special bone found in Slovenia. Some think it was made by early humans called Neanderthals, but others believe animals might have made the holes in it. If it is a flute, it could be the oldest one we know.

In Germany, scientists found flutes made from mammoth and swan bones that are between 30,000 and 37,000 years old. These are widely accepted as the oldest musical instruments.

Sumerian city of Ur

In the old city of Ur, which was part of Sumeria, researchers found a group of early musical instruments. These include lyres, harps, a silver double flute, a sistrum, and cymbals. They even found pieces of silver pipes that might be the first version of bagpipes. These instruments were placed in graves and dated to between 2600 and 2500 BC.

Jiahu site

At a place called Jiahu in China, archaeologists found bone flutes that are 7,000 to 9,000 years old. These flutes show that people living in ancient China knew a lot about music and how to make instruments that could play many notes.

History

See also: History of music

Studying the history of musical instruments is hard because we can't know exactly how they developed in different places. Sorting instruments by how complicated they are can be confusing, as simpler tools were sometimes used later.

German music expert Curt Sachs said arranging instruments by how they were made isn't reliable, since cultures grow at different speeds and have different materials.

It's also hard to order instruments by where they came from, because we can’t always tell when cultures shared ideas. Sachs suggested looking at geography up until around 1400, but after that, we can follow the general development of instruments over time.

Researchers use three main ways to learn about old instruments: looking at old objects, pictures in art, and written records. Using all three gives us a better picture of history.

Prehistoric

See also: Prehistoric music

For a long time, people in Europe thought the earliest stories about music came from myths and old books. These stories talked about figures like Jubal, Pan, and Mercury “inventing” instruments. But today, we know these stories are just myths.

The first instruments were simple tools like rattles and drums, which people used because they liked adding sound to activities like dancing. Over time, some cultures began using instruments in special ways, like for ceremonies or hunting. They made more complex drums and other tools like flutes and trumpets.

Some early cultures, like the Chukchi people in far-east Russia, the people of Melanesia, and many African groups, thought drums were very important, sometimes even sacred. In fact, drums were used in every culture across Africa. One East African group, the Wahinda, believed that seeing a drum could be dangerous for anyone who wasn’t their leader, the sultan.

People later learned to use instruments to make melodies, not just rhythms. They made pairs of instruments that sounded together—one might make a “clear” sound and the other a “darker” sound. These pairs were often linked to ideas about gender, with one instrument representing “father” and the other “mother.” Over thousands of years, these ideas led to more complex instruments like xylophones, which started in Southeast Asia and later spread to other parts of the world. Other early instruments included ground harps, musical bows, and jaw harps. Recent studies of old stone tools have suggested they might have been used as musical instruments too, called lithophones.

Antiquity

See also: Ancient music

Pictures of instruments start appearing in items from Mesopotamia as early as 2800 BC. Around 2000 BC, cultures like the Sumerians and Babylonians began to separate instruments into two groups: simple ones anyone could play, and more advanced ones for professionals. Very few instruments from this time have been found, so experts rely on old objects and written records to learn about them.

In Mesopotamia, common instruments included clappers, sistra, bells, cymbals, and rattles. The Sumerians and Babylonians loved string instruments, especially harps, lyres, and lutes, which are ancestors of modern string instruments like the violin.

Egyptian instruments from before 2700 BC looked a lot like those from Mesopotamia, suggesting the two cultures had contact. By 2700 BC, contact between the two seems to have stopped, and Egypt developed its own instruments like clappers, vertical flutes, double clarinets, arched harps, and drums.

Between 2700 BC and 1500 BC, Egypt went through a time of war and destruction. When Egyptian leaders took control of Southwest Asia around 1500 BC, they began using new instruments like oboes, trumpets, lyres, lutes, castanets, and cymbals influenced by nearby cultures.

In Israel between 2000 and 1000 BC, professional musicians didn’t exist. Information about instruments comes from the Bible and other old texts. Important instruments included pipes called ugab, lyres called kinnor, frame drums called tof, small bells called pa'amon, shofars, and trumpet-like instruments called hasosra.

When Israel established its first monarchy in the 11th century BC, professional musicians appeared, and many new instruments were introduced. However, it’s still hard to know exactly what these instruments looked like because there aren’t many pictures.

In Greece, Rome, and Etruria, instruments were simple and mostly borrowed from other cultures. Lyres were important for honoring gods. Greeks played wind instruments called aulos (reeds) and syrinx (flutes). Romans played reed instruments called tibia, which had holes that could be opened or closed. Other common instruments included vertical harps, lutes, pipes, organs, and clappers, often played by women.

In India, there isn’t much evidence of early instruments until the Indus Valley civilization around 3000 BC. The only clues are rattles, whistles, and a clay statue showing a drum. Later, during the Rigveda hymns, instruments like drums, shell trumpets, harps, and flutes were used. Other instruments included snake charmer’s double clarinets, bagpipes, barrel drums, cross flutes, and short lutes. India didn’t develop unique instruments until later times.

Chinese records mention zithers as early as the 12th century BC. Early Chinese thinkers like Confucius, Mencius, and Laozi helped shape how music and instruments were viewed, seeing music as important for character and community. The Chinese classified instruments based on the materials they were made from.

In Vietnam, a 2,000-year-old stringed instrument was found, giving clues about early music in Southeast Asia.

Idiophones, which make sound by vibrating, were very important in Chinese music. Early instruments included bells, chimes, drums, and flutes made from bone. The Zhou dynasty brought in percussion instruments like clappers, troughs, wooden fish, and yǔ (wooden tiger shapes). Wind instruments like flutes, pan-pipes, pitch-pipes, and mouth organs also appeared. The xiao, an end-blown flute, and other instruments spread to many cultures during and after the Han dynasty.

Civilizations in Central America, like those in modern-day Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia, and Chile, developed music more advancedly than those further north. While they had no string instruments, they used idiophones, drums, and wind instruments like flutes and trumpets. Only the flute could make melodies. South American cultures used pan-pipes, flutes, idiophones, drums, and shell or wood trumpets.

The Carnyx, a bronze instrument from the Iron Age Celts around 300 BC, had a bell shaped like a screaming animal head. It was likely used in battle.

Post-classical era/Middle Ages

During the post-classical era and Middle Ages in Europe, China mixed in musical influences from other regions. The first record of this happened in 384 AD when China created an orchestra after conquering Turkestan. Influences came from the Middle East, Persia, India, Mongolia, and other countries.

Cymbals became popular, along with advanced trumpets, clarinets, pianos, oboes, flutes, drums, and lutes. Some of the first bowed zithers appeared in China in the 9th or 10th century, influenced by Mongolian culture.

India also developed in this period, but string instruments changed differently to suit Hindu music. Rhythm was very important.

In pre-Islamic times, idiophones like handbells, cymbals, and gong-like instruments were common. Tubular drums, stick zithers (veena), short fiddles, double and triple flutes, coiled trumpets, and curved horns appeared. Islamic influences brought new drums, oboes, and sitars. The Islamic culture also introduced double-clarinet instruments like the Alboka.

Southeast Asia saw musical changes during a period of Indian influence. Balinese and Javanese music used xylophones and metallophones. The most important instrument in Southeast Asia was the gong, which came from between Tibet and Burma.

The areas of Mesopotamia and the Arabian Peninsula shared many musical instruments after being united by Islamic culture in the seventh century. Frame drums and cylindrical drums were very important.

Even though Greece and Rome had advanced culture, most musical instruments in Europe during the Middle Ages came from Asia. The lyre was the only instrument likely invented in Europe during this time. String instruments were common in Europe.

European music between 800 and 1100 became more complex and often needed instruments that could play polyphony. The Byzantine lyra, a bowed string instrument, is a ancestor of many European bowed instruments, including the violin.

The monochord was used to measure musical scales accurately. Mechanical hurdy-gurdies let single musicians play complex tunes, and both were popular folk instruments in the Middle Ages.

The ninth century saw the first bagpipes, which spread across Europe. Pneumatics organs began in Spain in the fifth century and reached England by about 700.

Modern

Western Classical

Renaissance

Musical instrument development was led by Europe from 1400 onward, especially during the Renaissance. Instruments began to have new purposes beyond just accompanying singing or dance, and performers used them as solo instruments. Keyboards and lutes became polyphonic instruments, and composers wrote increasingly complex pieces for them. Composers also began writing music specifically for certain instruments. By the late sixteenth century, orchestration—writing music for different instruments—became common.

Starting around 1400, the development of musical instruments sped up as music needed more dynamic sounds. People also began writing books about making, playing, and describing instruments; the first such book was Sebastian Virdung’s 1511 work Musica getuscht und ausgezogen.

In the sixteenth century, instrument makers gave instruments like the violin their “classical” shapes. There was also a focus on how beautiful instruments looked.

Baroque

Beginning in the seventeenth century, composers wrote music with more emotion. They preferred polyphony and wrote parts for instruments that could complement singing. As a result, instruments that couldn’t play large ranges or dynamics became less popular.

Bowed instruments like the violin, viola, baryton, and various lutes were popular. Around 1750, the lute faded from use as the guitar became more popular.

In the mid-seventeenth century, the hunter’s horn changed into an “art instrument”. The modern horn, or French horn, emerged by 1725.

Classical and Romantic

The Classical and Romantic periods, from about 1750 to 1900, saw many new instruments that could create new sounds and be louder.

Some instruments had to get louder to fill big halls and be heard over large orchestras.

New instruments like the clarinet, saxophone, and tuba became regular parts of orchestras.

Twentieth century to present

The development of traditional instruments slowed in the 20th century.

But the creation of new instruments exploded in the twentieth century. The spread of electricity led to a new category: electronic instruments, or electrophones.

The latter half of the 20th century saw the rise of synthesizers, which create sound using circuits and microchips.

In the late 1960s, Bob Moog and others developed the first commercial synthesizers, like the Moog synthesizer.

Samplers, introduced around 1980, let users sample and reuse existing sounds, and were important for hip hop. In 1982, MIDI—a standardized way to synchronize electronic instruments—was introduced.

Classification

There are many ways to group musical instruments. Some ways look at what the instrument is made of or how it makes sound. One famous way to group instruments is called Hornbostel–Sachs. This system puts instruments into four main groups:

• Idiophones - these vibrate the main body of the instrument.
• Membranophones - these use a stretched skin to make sound.
• Chordophones - these use strings.
• Aerophones - these use air to make sound.

Each group has many smaller groups too. This system is used by experts around the world because it works for all cultures.

An older system from ancient India also grouped instruments in a similar way. Over time, other systems have been created, but Hornbostel–Sachs is the most widely used today.

Construction

The materials used to make musical instruments can vary a lot. Some cultures use special materials because of their meaning or because they are rare. For example, in ancient Mexico, drums might have been made with special materials. In New Guinea, drum makers would mix special things into the glue used to attach drum skins. In China, mulberry trees were used to make zithers. The Yakuts believe drums made from trees struck by lightning have a special link to nature.

Making musical instruments is a special job that takes many years of learning and practice. Most instrument makers focus on one type of instrument, like a luthier who only makes string instruments. They think about the materials, how to build the instrument, and how it should look, making sure it works well and looks nice. Some builders create very artistic instruments, like Harry Partch, who made instruments to play his own music.

User interfaces

Many musical instruments have a keyboard you press to make sounds. These are called keyboard instruments. When you press a key, it makes one or more sounds. Some keyboard instruments have extra parts like pedals or stops to change the sounds. They can make sounds in different ways, like using wind, strings, or electronic parts. Some instruments that don’t usually have keyboards, like the glockenspiel, can sometimes be fitted with one.

There are also instruments like the theremin that you play without touching. You move your hands near it, and it changes the pitch and loudness of the sound. With new technology, we now have MIDI controllers that change how electronic instruments sound. These include special keyboards and other designs.

Many instruments can be played with either your right or left hand. Some instruments are made especially for left-handed players, like certain guitars. Famous left-handed players include Jimi Hendrix and Paul McCartney.

Instrumentalist

"Instrumentalist" redirects here. For the philosophical school, see Instrumentalism. For the magazine, see The Instrumentalist.

See also: Lists of musicians § Instrument, and Multi-instrumentalist

A person who plays a musical instrument is called an instrumentalist or instrumental musician. Many instrumentalists play special instruments such as a guitarist (guitar), a pianist (piano), a bassist (bass), and a drummer (drum). These musicians can play together in a group. Someone who plays many different instruments is called a multi-instrumentalist.