About This Quiz
Get everything correct and toot your own horn!
To the average person, the term "brass instrument" may seem to be a descriptive term used to define a group of instruments that are created from brass. This understanding of the term might be largely due to the fact that a lot of the most common brass instruments (like the tuba, the trumpet, the trombone and more) are often made from brass or similar metals. However, brass instruments are more wide-ranging than that, and the classification system is actually more intricate. The term "brass instrument" actually defines the instruments by the way that the sound is made - they are lip-vibrated instruments. As a result of this, there are several "brass instruments" that are made from wood, bone and other materials. Likewise, there are some instruments (like the saxophone) that are made of brass but are classified as woodwind instruments.
In this quiz, we've selected a handful of some of the most unique and iconic brass instruments from around the world. As a result, we've managed to create the ultimate brass instrument quiz for music lovers and history buffs alike! Are you ready to see if your knowledge is "pitch perfect"? Then let's get started!
The trombone is a brass instrument that virtually always has a telescoping slide mechanism that changes the pitch by varying the length of the instrument. The name is a combination of Italian words that translate to “large trumpet.”
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The bugle is a brass instrument that has no valves or pitch-altering mechanisms. It is one of the simplest brass instruments and is widely used by military forces.
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The vuvuzela, also known as a lepatata is a brass instrument that is notable for the loud monotone note that it produces. It gained worldwide attention and fame due to its usage in the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup and the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
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The tuba is notable for being the largest and lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass family. The word “tuba” is actually a Latin word that directly translates to “trumpet.”
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The French horn is a brass instrument that is technically German. Mechanically, it is made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell.
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The trumpet is a brass instrument and a general grouping of trumpet-like variants with the highest register in the brass family. As a result, it is one of the most popular types of brass instruments in the world.
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The clarion is a brass instrument that originated in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. The term was also used to refer to the upper register of the standard trumpet.
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The kombu originated in ancient India. Visually it resembles a long horn that is curved in either an S shape or in a C shape.
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The post horn is a brass instrument that was oftentimes used to signal the arrival or departure of a post rider or mail coach. Mechanically it is valveless and cylindrical, with a cupped mouthpiece.
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The buccin is mechanically similar to a trombone, but it has a very distinct visual appearance. The bell usually ends in a stylized serpent’s or dragon’s head.
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The Vienna horn is a brass instrument that, as the name suggests, is primarily used in Vienna, Austria. It is prominently used in the Wiener Staatsoper and the Vienna Philharmonic.
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The kakaki is a brass instrument that originated in Africa, particularly in Ethiopia, Nigeria, Chad, Ghana and Burkina Faso. It is extremely large, measuring anywhere between three and four meters.
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The firebird is a brass instrument that belongs to the trumpet family. It consists of a trombone-style slide and the standard three valves.
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The keyed trumpet is a brass instrument that is notable for being closer in tone to the natural trumpet than the valved trumpet. Mechanically, it makes use of keyed openings in its bore.
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The sackbut is a brass instrument that belongs to the trombone family. Mechanically it features a telescopic slide that is used to vary the length of the tube. It comes from the Renaissance and Baroque Eras.
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The cornu is a brass instrument that originated in ancient Rome. It was extremely long, having a length of approximately three meters.
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The helicon is a brass instrument that belongs to the tuba family. The better-known sousaphone is also in the tuba family.
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The carnyx originated with the Iron Age Celts. It was notable for being ornately adorned with stylized animal heads.
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This cornett - with two Ts - is a brass instrument that should not be confused with the “cornet” that is similar to a trumpet. The cornett was widely used in the Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque periods.
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The nabal is a brass instrument that originated in the Korean peninsula. It is a simple monotone horn that is notably used in military procession music.
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The baritone horn is a brass instrument that is low-pitched and in the saxhorn family. It is frequently found in brass bands in the United Kingdom and other parts of Western Europe.
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The flugelhorn is a brass instrument that visually resembles a trumpet, but it has a wider, conical bore. It is actually classified as a type of valved bugle.
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The contrabass bugle is a brass instrument that is oftentimes called the “marching tuba.” It is notable for being the lowest-pitched instrument in the drum and bugle corps and marching band horn line.
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The German horn is a brass instrument that is notable for its coiled and flared design. Along with the French horn and the Vienna horn, the German horn is one of the three most widely used types of horn in bands and orchestras.
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The fiscorn is a brass instrument that is related to the bass flugelhorn. It was initially played in polka bands throughout Germany.
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The contrabass trumpet is a brass instrument that originated in the 1960s. It is notable for being the lowest-sounding member of the trumpet family.
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The tenor horn is a brass instrument that belongs to the saxhorn family. It is commonly used in British brass bands.
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The Baroque trumpet is a brass instrument that was created in the mid-20th century. However, it is based heavily on the natural trumpet of the 16th to 18th centuries.
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The kangling originated in Tibet. Traditionally, it was made from the femur of a deceased human or from wood.
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The jazzophone is a brass instrument that is double-belled and shaped like a saxophone. It is relatively rare and the exact date of its creation is unknown.
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The Wagner tuba is a brass instrument that is also referred to as a Wagner horn or Bayreuth tuba. Tonally, it combines the features of the trombone and the French horn.
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The cornet is a brass instrument that is notably similar to the trumpet. However, it differs by having a mellower tone quality and a more compact shape.
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The sousaphone is a brass instrument that was created in 1893 by J.W. Pepper. It was actually named after American bandleader John Philip Sousa.
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The euphonium is a brass instrument that is named after the ancient Greek word “euphōnos,” which means sweet-voiced or well-sounding. It commonly features piston valves; however, there are some niche variants with rotary valves.
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The double bell euphonium is a brass instrument that is based on the earlier euphonium. As expected, it produces the mellow tone of a standard euphonium; however, it is also produces a brighter tone in the smaller second bell.
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The ophicleide is a brass instrument that features relatively complex tubing. It is similar to the tuba but visually resembles the sudrophone.
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