What is a brass musical instrument? - North Tyneside Brass in Schools

Brass musical instruments include bugles, cornets, trumpets, trombones, tubas, euphoniums, flugelhorns, tenor horns, baritone horns, french horns etc.

In this short video, the BBC National Orchestra of Wales introduce us to some brass musical instrument: the trumpet, trombone, tuba and french horn.

What is Brass? Brass is a kind of metal (you can find out more here) and it’s great for making some kinds of musical instruments, especially all the ones we now call “brass”.

However not all “brass” instruments are made of brass metal! And not all instruments made of brass metal are “brass” instruments!

In fact brass instruments are a modern development of early musical instruments made from wood or animal horns. Some animal horn instruments are still used like this replica Viking horn.

This is a traditional “shofar” horn made from a ram’s horn and still used today in the Jewish religion.

The brass section of a band is still often called the “horn” section, and the instruments are called “horns” whether they are trumpets, trombones, tubas, french horns, tenor or baritone horns, flugelhorns, etc.

You might be surprised to know that the instruments we use at North Tyneside Brass in Schools are mostly plastic with some brass fittings. But they are real musical instruments with a great sound and ideal for beginners.

So what does make a musical instrument a “brass” instrument?

Well, I’m glad you asked! It’s all to do with the way you blow into it to make the sound. Brass instruments have a round mouthpiece.

The player places the mouthpiece over their mouth, so that part of their lips are inside, and then “buzzes”. That means they blow air out through their lips to make them vibrate, like a bee buzzing. Also called “blowing a raspberry” or “making fart noises” (not that you will ever hear us being so rude!).

Compare that with the way a saxophone is played – also usually made of brass but not in the “brass” family of musical instruments. See our introducing page here.