All About Musical Instruments Trivia Quiz

Answer: Alphorn

The Swiss alphorn is made of wood and looks like a very long tube with a curved bell on the end. A player blows into a carved wooden mouthpiece to produce the sound. Originally a herdsman's instrument, the Swiss alphorn dates back to the 14th century.

The herdsmen used the alphorn to signal danger to the villagers and, later, to summon them to church. In Moldova and Romania only men and boys play the alphorn. In the western Carpathians the instrument is played by women and children.

Answer: Shawm

The medieval shawm was simply made. It was constructed of wood, made in one piece, with seven finger holes and a thumb hole. The reed was attached to a metal disc and the player placed his lips against it to produce a rather shrill sound. The base of the shawm flared out like a bell.

As the instrument developed through the late Middle Ages and Renaissance periods, the reed was designed so that the player could manipulate it with the lips. Due to the shrill sound they produced, shawms were played outdoors at open-air performances.

Answer: Glockenspiel

The European concept of the glockenspiel originated in the Netherlands where it was introduced from Indonesia in the second half of the 17th century. Originally the glockenspiel was a keyed instrument in which small metal hammers struck the bars from below. Nowadays the instrument is more commonly made of a series of graduated steel bars, arranged in two rows and played with moderately hard beaters.

The modern incarnation has a superior tone and dynamic range.

Answer: Curtal

The curtal, or dulcian, was developed in Italy during the Renaissance period due to the need for instruments of a bass register for use with choirs. By 1600 curtals were played throughout Europe. Smaller, high-pitched versions were popular in Spain and Austria as part of church ensembles.

The more usual method of making curtals was to bore two channels, connected to each other by a U-bend at the lower ends, into a single block of wood. Today's bassoon blends well with other instruments and adds a beautiful tone to an orchestral composition.

Answer: Hurdy-Gurdy

Going back as far as the 10th century, the hurdy-gurdy, which sounds like a mechanical violin, is able to sound two or more notes simultaneously while producing a continuous drone. In 18th-century France, where it was known as the symphonie, the instrument became quite a fashionable court instrument favored by aristocrats.

The popularity of the hurdy-gurdy ended with the French Revolution.

Answer: Maraca

The maraca is a percussion instrument and is usually played in pairs. It is made with gourds or coconut shells and filled with beans or seeds. The term maraca is believed to have originated from the Tupi language spoken by indigenous people of Brazil.

Answer: Virginal

The virginal consisted of 32 metal strings lying parallel with the keyboard, each string longer than the next, forming a triangle inside the case. The virginal looked like a clavichord but sounded like a harpsichord since the strings were plucked. The panel above the keyboard was typically very ornate.

The reference to its name might have had to do with the young women of that time who played the instrument. The double virginal had two independent keyboards and two independent sets of strings. It was invented in Antwerp in the late 16th century.

Answer: Flute

A 5000-year old Egyptian painting depicts a fox playing a flute. Egyptian flutes were made of cane or metal. The transverse flute, or side-blown flute, has been found depicted on Etruscan tombs and urns. The flute is pitched in the key of C and is considered a woodwind instrument.

The piccolo is pitched an octave higher than the flute and is half its size. The fife, smaller than the flute, has a narrower bore and shriller sound. It has been used primarily in marching bands and was used in the British army until the 1890s.

Answer: Bagpipes

The distinctive feature of the Scottish bagpipes is the long blowpipe that allows the player to stand erect to play it. Scottish bagpipes consist of three single reed drones, two tenor and one bass, and a double-reed chanter. Irish pipes were mouth-blown and fell into disuse in the 18th century and replaced by the Scottish bagpipes. Until the 19th century, there was no written music for the Highland bagpipes since it was transmitted aurally.

Answer: English Horn

Although the fingering of the English horn, or cor anglais, is the same as the oboe, it is pitched in F. The oboe is pitched in C. It is also 1½ times bigger than the oboe. The cor anglais of the mid 18th century was curved to a crescent or bent at an angle and covered in black leather.

The curved end made the instrument easier to hold and to play. The modern cor anglais is straight with a globular bell. Its tone is closer to the oboe d'amore, a larger version of the oboe.