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By: Ikedi Ani-okoye.

Musical instruments introduction

There are hundreds of different kinds of musical instruments in the world. Some of the basic instruments can be made at home while others have to be made professionally. In some cases, homemade musical instruments can be an excellent business venture if the knowledge and expertise has been passed down from ancestors.

For some it may be for solely recreational purposes while others may indulge in it for artistic reasons. Children may also get involved in making musical instruments at an early age. This is usually introduced in craft classes at schools or at holiday camps through vocational training.

African Musical instruments

In traditional African culture, music has ritual, social, and ceremonial functions along with some solely recreational functions. Musical activities are highly ritualized and are considered to link the invisible world with the visible world. Melodies are generally organized within a scale of four, five, six, or seven tones.

Musical instruments in Africa take on sculptural forms that are sacred, elaborate, simple, humorous, and serious, or a combination of all. Irrespective of whether these musical instruments are beaded, carved, painted, or decorated with skins, they send messages about the religious beliefs, artistic styles, and entertainment practices of the people who made them.

Musical instruments classifications

Musical instruments can be classified on the basis of the kind of instrument: chordophones (strings), aerophones (woodwinds and brasses), idiophones (percussion), and membranophones (drums). Stringed instruments or chordophones are those that produce sounds when a string is plucked or strummed.

The kind of sound produced depends on the mass of the string, length of the vibrating portion of the string, tension in the string, and the point at which the string is strummed apart from the kind of resonating cavity in the instrument. Viola, violin, cello, guitar, mandolin, fiddle, harp, lute, banjo, balalaika, koto, ukulele, etc. are some of the string instruments.

CONCLUSION

If you decide to build musical instruments, The very first thing you should do is decide what type of instrument you plan to build. You can choose a woodwind, brass, string, percussion, or electronic instrument. Either way, making that decision is the best first step because that will limit the types of supplies you will need. After deciding what you want to build, you should get a tool kit that matches your preferences. Then, you should look for the types of parts you think you will need.