Stringed bow instruments: description of the band

The basis of the symphony orchestra is the group located in the center, directly in front of the audience and the conductor. These are stringed bow instruments. The source of the sound is the vibration of the strings. Classification of the Hornbostel-Sachs stringed instruments are called chordophones. When two violins, viola and cello play together, you get a string quartet. This is chamber music of stringed instruments.

Predecessors

Contrabasses, cellos, violas and even violins did not appear first, they were preceded by violas, which became popular in the fifteenth century. The sound of them was soft and gentle, so very soon they became favorites of all orchestras. String bow instruments as such appeared long before violets, but still they are much younger than the instruments of plucked instruments.

The bow was invented in India, even the ancient Greeks did not know about it yet. Arabs, Persians, Africans passed him from country to country as a baton, and gradually (by the eighth century) the bow fell to Europe. There were formed stringed bow instruments, which, mutating, gave birth first to violet, and then violin.

Viola

The violas were of different sizes and voices from different heights, some stood between the knees, others - on their knees, the third - larger ones - stood on the bench and they had to be played standing. There were also small violas that held, like a violin, on their shoulders. Viola da gamba is still in orchestras, she has a very peculiar and beautiful "voice." She triumphantly existed until the eighteenth century, then for some time the cello played her parts. Only in 1905, the viola da gamba returned to the orchestra. Stringed bow instruments have greatly enriched their sound due to its return.

In general, the violas have long been more acceptable for aristocrats: they have a refined, as if muffled sound, the music organically sounds by candlelight, when the musicians in velvet clothes and powdered wigs. The violins first won folk music, so they were not admitted to the palaces and salons for a long time, the violas and lutes reigned there.

The musical violas were made of the most valuable materials and were also very beautiful, even the heads were often with artistic carvings in the form of flowers, heads of animals or people.

Masters

In the fifteenth century, with the advent of violins, lute and viola masters began to retrain as folk fair instruments supplanted the old aristocratic ones, as they had much more possibilities for extracting sound, expressive and technically sophisticated. In Cremona, the famous Andrea Amati school was founded, which became hereditary. His grandson managed to make violins, which greatly increased the sound, and the warmth, softness and variety of timbre were preserved.

Violins began to be able to express everything: human feelings and even imitate the intonations of the human voice. After another century, another master Antonio Stradivari, a disciple of Nico Amati, opened his own studio and also excelled. Also an outstanding master was and Giuseppe Guarneri, who came up with a new violin design, more perfect. All these schools were family, the case was continued by both children and grandchildren. They produced not only violins, but also all other stringed bow instruments.

Names of orchestral instruments

The highest string of stringed bow instruments is played by a violin, and the lowest is a double bass. Closer to the violin sound - a little lower - the viola sounds, and even lower - the cello. The form of his all stringed bow instruments resemble a human figure, only in different sizes.

The case of violins has two decks - the lower and upper, the first is made of maple, and the second of spruce. It is the decks responsible for the quality and strength of sound. On the top there are figured slits - efs, and they are similar to the letter "f". The body is fastened to the neck (the "fingers" of the violinist's fingers "run"), usually it is made of ebony, and over it strings are stretched - there are four of them. They are fastened with pins, screwing on them and stretching. That depends on the tension of the pitch of the sound, the violinist adjusts the violin, twisting the pegs.

How they are played

The viola is larger than the violin, although it is also held on the shoulder. The cello is even larger, it is played on a chair, setting up a tool on the floor between the legs. The contrabass is much larger than a cello in size, the bass player always plays standing, in rare cases sits on a high stool.

The bow is a cane made of wood, on which thick horse hair is stretched, which are then lubricated with rosin - pine resin. Then the bow slightly adheres to the string and as it pulls it along with it. The string vibrates and therefore it sounds. All the string-bow instruments of the symphony orchestra work precisely on this principle. When the score requires it, it is possible to extract the sound from the string bow with a pinch (pizzicato) and even blow the wooden part of the bow.

Alto

Alto looks very much like a violin, it's just wider and more authentic, but the timbre is special, the sound is lower and thicker. Not every violinist can play an alto with a body length of forty-six centimeters and a bar. The fingers should be strong and long, the brush is wide and also strong. And, of course, you need a special sensitivity. All these qualities together are quite rare.

Although the composers alto is not as popular as the rest of the string string instruments, it is still very important in the symphony orchestra. And when playing solo, for example, Yuri Bashmet, the value of this instrument is especially well felt.

Cello

There is no instrument more adapted to express feelings such as sorrow, sadness, sadness, even despair. The voice of the cello has a soul-piercing special timbre, not similar to any other instrument. Alexander Greene compared in his "Scarlet Sails" violin with a clean girl named Assol, and cello - with a passionate Carmen. And indeed, the cello can transmit very strong feelings and a vivid character very deeply.

Cello was produced simultaneously with violins already by the very first masters, but Antonio Stradivari brought it to perfection. This instrument was not noticed for a long time in the orchestra, leaving him with escorts, but when this voice was really heard, the composers wrote a lot of solo and chamber music for the cello, and the performers more and more improved the technique of playing this instrument.

Contrabass

This is the lowest stringed instrument on the register. The form of a double bass violin is not very similar: a sloping body, its shoulders are closely adjacent to the neck. The sound of it is booming, dense, low, and without a bass register the orchestra will not sound good, so the double-bass there is simply irreplaceable. And, it takes root in almost any orchestra - even jazz. You can not do without it.

If you compare the orchestral score with the human body, then the bass part is a skeleton, on which, respectively, "meat" is a harmonious accompaniment, and the melodic line is "skin", it is visible to all. If you imagine that the skeleton is removed from the body, what happens? Yes, the bag is shapeless. That's just as necessary and the bass, it all keeps. Which string-bow instruments can keep the rhythm of the entire orchestra? Only double basses.

Violin

Stringed bow instruments are rightfully considered her queen, when the violin sings, the others can only sing along. The sound is extracted in a tricky way, which no other instrument of this group can do. The bow with a hard, rough, coarse horsehair, rubbed with rosin, is almost a file, because a strong rosin is poured with powder. When the bow touches the string, it immediately sticks and pulls the string behind it, as long as its elasticity is enough, then it comes off to immediately adhere again. Here is the movement of the string - uniform, when the bow pulls it, and the sine wave on the return, - and gives that unique timbre.

Also, such subtlety: for other instruments, for guitars, for example, the strings are tightened to hard metal paddles, and they rely on the violin on a wooden, rather flimsy stand, which oscillates when playing in both directions, and transfers these vibrations to all strings, even Those whom the bow does not touch. So in the overall picture are added barely perceptible vocals, which further enrich the sound of the instrument.

Tool options

The intonational freedom of playing the violin is just endless. She can not only sing, but also whistle, and mimic the croaking of the door and the bird's chirping. And one day on television showed April Fools' humor, where the violinist mixed the audience, imitating the game completely unrelated to music sounds. For example, the illegible voice of the dispatcher at the station, announcing the arrival of the train. The word "pavtryaaaaayu" violin directly uttered. The mastery of this tool depends most of all on the quality of the performer's hearing, and the training should be long. It is not in vain that children begin to learn in three to four years, so that the results will be worthy.