Glockenspiel
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Most orchestral glockenspiels are mounted in a case. |
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Musician playing glockenspiel at front left; Sousaphone at behind at right. |
The
Glockenspiel (
German, "play of
bells", also known as
orchestra bells and, in its portable form,
bell lyra or
bell lyre) is a
musical instrument in the
percussion family. It is similar to the
xylophone, in that it has tuned bars laid out in a fashion resembling a
piano keyboard. The xylophone's bars are wooden, while the glockenspiel's are metal, thus making it a
metallophone.
The glockenspiel, moreover, is much smaller and higher in
pitch. When used in a marching or military band, the bars are sometimes mounted in a portable case and held vertically. In
orchestral use, the bars are mounted horizontally. A pair of hard
mallets are generally used to strike the bars, although if laid out horizontally, a keyboard may be attached to the instrument to allow
chords to be more easily played. One piece where such an instrument is used is
Mozart's
Die Zauberflöte (although that part is usually played by a
celesta nowadays). A more modern day piece to use the glockenspiel is the 1977
Brothers Johnson remake of
Shuggie Otis' classic
Strawberry Letter 23. Even more modern uses of the glockenspiel include
Radiohead's song
No Surprises from their 1997 album
OK Computer (played by
Jonny Greenwood), and extensive use of (synthesized or
sampled) glockenspiel in
gangsta rap.
The Arcade Fire employs use of the glockenspiel on many of the songs on their debut album
Funeral. Canadian
post-rock band
Godspeed You! Black Emperor also makes use of glockenspiels in its music. The
Black Crowes' song
Gone on the album
Amorica and
Jimi Hendrix's
Little Wing from the album
Axis: Bold as Love also use a glockenspiel. 2005's release
The Best Party Ever by
The Boy Least Likely To is also noted by twee pop/indie pop enthusiasts as using the glockenspiel to give the album a more childish and innocent feel.
The glockenspiel's range is limited to the upper register, and usually covers about two and a half to three
octaves. In
sheet music, the notes to be played by the glockenspiel are written two octaves lower than they will sound when played. When struck, the bars give a very pure, bell-like sound.
Other instruments which work on the same struck-bar principle as the glockenspiel include the
marimba and the
vibraphone. There are also many glockenspiel-like instruments in
Indonesian
gamelan ensembles.
In Germany, a
Carillon is also called a
Glockenspiel.
*
Glockenspiel at the Vienna Symphonic Library
