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Year 7 - Music

The string family and the woodwind family

Orchestral melodies

Unit Summary

This unit develops knowledge and understanding of the instruments of the orchestra. Pupils also learn to play a famous orchestral melody on the keyboard, learning to play and move out of position and they learn to identify from C to octave C on the stave through performance.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to identify the characteristics of the string family and the woodwind family.

Key Notes

  • The orchestra is a large ensemble used often in classical music and film. It consists of four families of instruments.
  • The strings consist of four main instruments: violin, viola, cello and double bass. They can be bowed or plucked.
  • The woodwind family consists of five main instruments: flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon and saxophone.
  • The saxophone is not used often in the orchestra.
  • Each instrument in each family has a distinctive timbre.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • orchestra: A large ensemble traditionally used in classical music and film music
  • ensemble: A group of musicians performing together e.g. a choir, band or orchestra
  • strings: A family of instruments in the orchestra which use bowed or plucked strings to produce a sound
  • timbre: The timbre of an instrument is how it sounds
  • woodwind: A family of instruments in the orchestra which use air to produce the sound

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • The string instruments can only be identified by pitch. The woodwind instruments are made of wood.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

1. Explain the lesson in two key points.

The orchestra is a large ensemble used often in classical music and film. It consists of four families of instruments. The strings consist of four main instruments: violin, viola, cello and double bass. They can be bowed or plucked.

2. What does this key word mean in this lesson? 'orchestra'

A large ensemble traditionally used in classical music and film music.

3. Correct this common mistake.

Mistake: The string instruments can only be identified by pitch. The woodwind instruments are made of wood. Correction: The pitch of the instruments does overlap slightly, so it's important to emphasise that the timbre of each instrument is slightly different. Most woodwind instruments were originally made of wood but the flute and the saxophone are now made of metal.

More Lessons In This Unit

Browse all guides in the Year 7 Music guide library.