Understanding what a music band is will always give you a broader idea of what instruments
are used. The marching band is simply defined as an activity consisting of instrumental
musicians. Considering what instruments are in a marching band, most of their performances are outdoor performances mainly for entertainment purposes and competitions. The bands are now no longer limited to military and other
international institutions as even schools can now have their well equipped school bands.
Let’s focus our attention on the types of instruments that are commonly used in a school or
- college marching band.
Gone are the old days when high school students only performed in the
traditional uniformed way while matching along the football field playing the instruments? The
traditional marching band which is still common in many institutions is composed of students
playing instruments such as percussion, brass and woodwinds. The students will also be in
uniforms and marching in various formations.
- Brass instruments
These include the cornet,
trumpet, tuba and French horn. The cornet and trumpet are quite similar in design as they all
are pitched in B flat. Both are said to be transported instruments and all have valves. The
distinctions come in their usage. The trumpet is mainly used jazz bands while the cornet is
used in brass bands. The trumpet is also known to have a more powerful sound and characterized
by a cylindrical bore. Cornets one the other hand commonly have a conical bore.
- Tuba.
This is a deep sounding instrument and is the largest in size of the brass wind family. The music for
the tuba just like in a trombone can either be written in the bass or a treble clef. It is
not known to require much lung power but can be hard to handle especially for inexperienced
individuals.
The French horn is an instrument used in operas mostly in the 1600s when a hunting
scene is included. Its standing out characteristic is the bell that points backwards. The
Mellophone, a type of a French horn, is one of the types of instruments that are commonly used
in a school or college marching band.
- Another classification is the woodwinds.
These include clarinets, flute, oboe and a saxophone. The clarinet over the last few decades has undergone
through several changes and innovations. This makes it have several forms. The flute is
considered to be among the oldest man made instruments used to play music. This gives it a
core value and space in the school bands. The oboe that originated from the swans mainly used
at outdoor events. Mostly it is used as a solo instrument by the military and orchestras. The
saxophone comes in a variety of types and sizes. The mostly used in school marching bands are
the alto sax and baritone sax.
- The next classification is that of percussion instruments.
This includes the bass drum, cymbals, glockenspiel, timpani and the xylophone. These are key in
voice modification and form a very important class of instruments that make the band’s sinning
sound amazing.
