The violin is a four-stringed instrument that is part of the Sting family. It is the smallest instrument in this family and makes the highest pitch sound.
The violin is played by holding the instrument with the left hand, placing it on the left shoulder, under the chin, and playing the strings witht eh bow, held in the right hand.
The piece of music that we chose to illustrate the violin's sounds is titled Jewish Town and was written by John Williams for the Steven Speilberg film Shindler's List.
This piece starts with a single violin playing a monophonic line. When a second violin is added, we hear polyphony. The other instruments in the orchestra join the violin, the violin is still the featured instrument, and what we hear the most. The contour of this piece ranges from very high to very low. The sound ranges from soft to loud, getting louder when more instruments are added. The general feeling of this piece is sadness.
The violin has about 70 parts, which are all made out of wood with the exception of the strings. |
