Music is a very important part in many people's lives. It is used in religious services, for people's own satisfaction, for entertainment, and even for someone's livelihood. Musical instruments were fully accepted into Western society around the

year 900. Although musical styles have greatly changed throughout the ages, the instruments are still a very important part of people's lives because music is beneficial to them.

Music in the middle ages helped alleviate the drudgery of many people's lives. People would get together and play in small instrumental ensembles. Or they would get their own instrument out at the end of a long day and relax with the latest dance tune.

There are several different types of musical instruments. Many of these were invented or perfected in the middle ages. Some wind instruments are: the shawm, cornetto, gemshorn, serpent, early trumpet, and the sackbut. Their modern counterparts are: oboe, recorder, flute, tuba, modern trumpet, and the trombone. There were also many string instruments in the Middle Ages including the psaltery, dulcimer, and the lute. Some of these instruments are still around today in different forms such as the harpsichord, ne

One of the brass instruments was the serpent. This was the predecessor of the modern day tuba. It was shaped like a large "s." Oddly, it was considered a brass instrument even though it was made out of wood. Edme Guillaume invented the serpent in 1590 and it was originally used for reinforcement of low men's voices (Christine 1).

The newer dulcimer has not improved as greatly as the other instruments. It still has basically the same design. The dulcimers of today have many strings, but in the Middle Ages, they only had six to nine strings. These instruments still can be played with hammers, and they are still very portable, being played on the lap or table (1). Nowadays, dulcimers are used more for show instead of being played.

The first string instrument is the psaltery. This was a low instrument used to support the voices in choirs or played alone. It was mostly used in the early Middle Ages and early Renaissance. The psaltery almost vanished completely by the sixteenth century except where it was seen in Mexico. It is said that this instrument eventually evolved into the zither, harpsichord, and others (Darling 1).

Instruments have changed dramatically in their manufacture or appearance over the years. Many of these changes were made to accommodate a more discriminating ear. Early instrumental ensembles were used primarily for entertainment or leisure time activities. Modern instrumentalists, playing in symphony orchestras, have a need for the much improved tone quality and pitch value that their instruments can produce.

Munrow, David. Instruments of the Middle Ages and Renaissance. London: Oxford University Press, 1976.

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