Ms. Busch's Elementary Orchestra Web Site

The Violin The violin is a bowed instrument. It has four strings and is tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest and highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments. This family also includes the viola and cello. Popular mainstream musicians who have used the violin include Linda Brava, Miri Ben-Ari, Nigel Kennedy, and Jean-Luc Ponty. The Beatles first used violins and full orchestration during their experimental psychedlic phase, paving the way for rock bands for years to come. Those who followed include the Who, Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), Camper Van Beethoven, the Dave Matthews Band, the Corrs, Yellowcard, the Arcade Fire, and Nickel Creek, to name a few. In the post-rock genre, groups like Sigur Rós, Zox, and Broken Social Scene have also employed the violin. Many musicians have made use of this ageless instrument to create some of history’s most beautiful and memorable music. The word “violin” originated from the Romance languages. It comes from the Middle Latin word “vitula,” meaning “stringed instrument.” It is possible that this word may also be the source of the Germanic-rooted “fiddle.” The first violin emerged in Italy in the early 16th century. It is likely that the first violin makers (known as luthiers) took their inspiration from the Renaissance fiddle, the rebec and the lira da braccio. Almost immediately, the violin became wildly popular. Both street musicians and the nobility played the instrument. As testament to the popularity of the new instrument, in 1560, King Charles IX of France ordered Andrea Amati — the first known luthier to add four strings to the violin — to construct 24 violins for him. The Amati family is among a celebrated group of luthiers from the 16th to 18th century. This group also includes: The Guarneri family, the Stradivari family, the Gagliano family, Giovanni Battista Guadagnini of Piacenza, and Jacob Stainer. People who play violin are called either violinists or fiddlers, no matter what style of music they play. Fiddling is a distinct style of violin music. Fiddlers have been essential to the development of folk music. The violin has been used across time and many different genres of music. No matter how different they may sound, this timeless and elegant instrument unites them. http://www.nelson.planet.org.nz/~matthew/cbt.html

The Viola   The viola has four strings tuned in fifths (C G D A). On average, the viola is 5 cm longer than the violin; unlike the violin and the cello, however, who have relatively standard norms, its size may vary by 8 cm from one instrument to another! Despite such disparties, its timbre is perfectly recognizable, for its deep tone quality is warm and veiled while its high

The Cello The violoncello or cello is the tenor voice in the string family. While shaped like a violin, the cello is much larger and is held between the player’s knees. Because it can produce beautiful sounds from its lowest to its highest notes, it is a popular instrument. Many people think that the cello, correctly called the violoncello, descended from the viols, but this simply isn't true. It actually originated in the 16th century as a member of the violin family. While the construction of the various violins used features of other instruments available at that time, such as viols and rebecs, violins are a separate family of instruments.  The cello has changed in size over the past several centuries, but otherwise it is basically the same. Stradivari was the violin maker who standardized the size of the modern cello. Until the time of his creations, celli often reached 80 cm in length, which made it very clumsy to play. In 1707 he shortened the size to 75 cm.

The Double-Bass The Double Bass, also known as acoustic bass, bass violin, string bass, contrabass, upright bass, stand-up bass and doghouse bass. The musician, or double-bassist, may either play it while seated or standing. When standing, the bass is supported by the left leg while the left hand moves up and down the fingerboard. When seated, the bass is supported by the musician's right thigh and pelvis and by the use of an endpin on the floor. The double-bass is played by using a bow across the strings, striking or plucking the strings. The double bass comes in a variety of sizes to suit the age of the player.There is also an electric upright bass. In 1493, there was mention about "viols as big as myself" by Prospero and in 1516 there was an illustration closely resembling that of a double bass.