October 31, 2023

Fadwa Dalay

12th Grade

Mohamed 6 High School

The world of instruments is one that we all hold a fond love for in our hearts. As humans, we are constantly listening to music, making it, and dancing to it. With that being said, have you ever wondered about the history of the wonderful world of music? Why do all instruments sound distinctly different and how do their designs differ? 

During the Classical and Romantic periods of music, lasting from roughly the 1750s to the 1900s, many new musical instruments were developed and in the 20th century, the proliferation of electricity led to the invention of new electronic instruments, such as electric guitars, synthesizers, and the theremin. 

For instance, the difference between acoustic guitars and electronic ones is that in acoustic guitars, the soundboard is critical for making sound. When the strings are plucked, they vibrate and the vibrations are amplified by the body. The type of internal support beneath the soundboard and the top wood’s thickness play an important role in the guitar's tone. Electric guitars, on the other hand, have solid bodies that don’t rely on the resonance of the soundboard; they use pickups that sense and capture the mechanical vibrations by a transducer to convert them into electrical signals. The type of pickups and their placement affect the guitar’s sound, as well as its electronic configuration and hardware.

Humans used to make instruments by hand with raw materials such as sticks, shells, and bones. After the Industrial Revolution, which was a period of vast scientific and technological development, instruments were now made within big factories and were mass-produced. The design of instruments comes from experimenting with materials, decorations, and shapes to make them unique within a culture or religious belief. Musical instruments make music by creating notes, and these different notes are made by tuned instruments that vibrate. Although some instruments might have similarities in the pitch of their sound (or how high or low it is), different instruments make distinct sounds because they produce different waves with different patterns. Moreover, bigger instruments tend to make lower and louder notes than small ones.