User:Ovinus/Trumpet family

The trumpet group, in the broadest sense, includes any lip-vibrated aerophone (instrument which primarily produces sound via vibrating air). Trumpets have an opening in which the player "buzzes" their lips, producing periodic puffs of air which create a standing wave in the air column, perceived as a note. This broadest group is subdivided into natural trumpets, which lack pitch-altering components, and chromatic trumpets, which include such components. Among natural trumpets, the Hornbostel–Sachs system distinguishes the conches from everything else—the tubular natural trumpets. Among chromatic trumpets, it subdivides by the method of pitch alteration, such as valves, slides, or keys. Trumpets are also distinguished by the shape of their bore: A "cylindrical" bore remains relatively constant along most of the air column, while a conical bore widens more gradually.

This broadest group includes instruments infrequently called "trumpets", such as the tuba and didgeridoo; all brass instruments can be considered trumpets. Musicologist Philip Bate considered "true Trumpet[s]" to have three essential features: a nearly cylindrical portion, a section which expands to a flared bell, and a mouthpiece in the form of a thick-rimmed cup. He distinguished this grouping from the general, ethnological definition of trumpet.