Category:PHYS341-2017/How the Quality of Brass Affects the Tone of Brass Instruments

How the Quality of Brass Affects the Tone of Brass Instruments
Brass instruments are musical instruments that produce sounds when a player vibrates their lips, which results in sympathetic vibrations of air in a tubular resonator. Many factors affect how the instrument will sound, such as the type of brass used to make the instrument, the flare of the bell, the bore size and shape, as well as the type of plating that is on the instrument.

How brass instruments are made

Sheets of brass are cut into certain shapes for the different parts of the instrument. The rough shapes of each part of the instrument are often hand-hammered to smooth out any imperfections, and then put through machines to make things even more precise. They are cut to different lengths, bent into tubular shapes, then soldered together. The instrument is then buffed to shine, so they can be coated later on in different types of metal plating which protects the instrument from corrosion. Smaller moving parts like the valve and adjustable tuning slides are prepared and buffed separately, then assembled later.

Bore sizes and shapes

Trumpet, trombone - cylindrical bore
Horn, Tuba, Euphonium - conical bore

Cylindrical bore = brighter, more piercing sound Conical bore = mellower, warming sound