Medieval Musical Instruments

History, Facts and interesting information about Medieval music, specifically, Medieval Musical
Instruments

Medieval Musical Instruments

Medieval Musical instruments would be used by the musicians of the period including the Waits,
Minstrels or Troubadours. There were three categories of musical instruments in the Middle Ages -
wind, string and percussion. Many of the Medieval musical instruments were the forerunners to our
modern musical instruments.

Bas Instruments and Haut Instruments

Terms of description were Bas instruments and Haut instruments. Bas referred to soft instruments
(literally, "low," but referring to volume, not pitch) which were suitable for the chamber. This type of
instrument included the vielle, rebec and other bowed strings, the lute and other plucked strings and
the recorders. Haut referred to loud instruments (literally "high" but referring to volume, not to
pitch) which were suitable for outdoors. This type of instrument included the shawm, sackbut, pipe
and tabor.

Categories of Medieval Musical Instruments

There were many Medieval Musical Instruments that can be described as part of the following
categories:

Woodwind Instruments - Musical instruments which were blown like trumpets or bagpipes

String Instruments - Musical instruments which were played with a bow or plucked

Percussion Instruments - various forms of drums and bells were used during the Medieval times

Types of String Musical Instruments

There were many types of string Musical Instruments played during the Medieval times including the
instruments detailed in the following list:

The Harp - The harp was a favorite instrument of the troubadours and minstrels and was about 30
inches in length

Lute - A plucked string instrument having a pear-shaped body, a usually bent neck, and a fretted
fingerboard

The Fiddle - There were a variety of Medieval Fiddles which were played with a bow or plucked and
usually held under the chin or in the crook of the arm. Easily portable and one of the most popular
street musical instruments
The Rebec - The rebec was an instrument with a round pear-shaped body much like an early violin

The Psaltery - The Psaltery was a Medieval musical instrument which was a cross between a harp
and a lyre

Chittarone - a lute which could reach 6 feet tall

Cittern - Similar to a modern guitar

The Dulcimer - The Dulcimer was played by striking the strings with small hammers

Gittern - Similar to a modern guitar

The Viol - Viols were played with a bow and held on the lap or between the legs

The Vielle - Popular string instrument with troubadours and jongleurs

Mandolin and Mandore - A small and beautifully shaped string instrument resembling the lute

The Clavichord - an early stringed instrument like a piano but with more delicate sound

Harpsichord - a harp-shaped instrument of music set horizontally on legs, like the grand piano

Spinet - The Spinet can be described as a keyed instrument of music resembling a harpsichord, but
smaller

Medieval Musical Instrumnets - the Vielle

The Vielle

Types of Woodwind Musical Instruments

There were many types of Woodwind Musical Instruments played during the Medieval times
including the instruments detailed in the following list:

The Flute - Similar to our modern flutes. This type of Musical instruments played by flute-minstrels
of the Middle Ages

The Trumpet - Long instrument made of metal, often in four parts - often associated with fanfares
and pageants

The Pipe - The pipe was an extremely basic instrument usually having only three melody holes

The Shawm - The shawm was a reed instrument with vent holes

Recorder - The recorder was also an extremely basic instrument with melody holes

Flageolet - A small fipple flute with four finger holes and two thumb holes.

The Bagpipe - The Bagpipe was an ancient instrument, used by the poorest people and was made
using a goat or sheep skin and a reed pipe
The Crumhorn - The crumhorn (Curved Horn) was introduced in the 1400's as a double reed musical
instrument

The Gemshorn - The gemshorn was made of horn of an ox, chamois or similar

Cornett - The cornett was an early woodwind instrument taking the form of a long tube with
woodwind-style fingerholes

The Lizard - The lizard was a descriptive term for an s-shaped horn

The Ocarina - An egg-shaped woodwind instrument with a mouthpiece and finger holes

Sackbut - A medieval musical instrument resembling a trombone

Hautboy - A slender double-reed woodwind instrument with a conical bore and a double-reed
mouthpiece

English Horn - Despite its name it is not a horn - this instrument is more similar to an oboe

Cor Anglais - Another name commonly used for the Cor Anglais is the English Horn

Horns - Originally made of a horn (ox or a ram)

Bombard - The Bombard can be described as a large shawm

Oboe - evolved from the Shawm into the hautboy and then the oboe

Trombone- a long tube whose length can be varied by a U-shaped slide

Tuba - an ancient trumpet, the lowest brass woodwind instrument

Medieval Woodwind Musicians

Medieval Woodwind Musicians

Types of Percussion Musical Instruments

There were many types of Percussion Musical Instruments played during the Medieval times
including the music instruments detailed in the following list:

The Drum - Drums were made initially from a hollow tree trunk, clay or metal and covered by skins
of water animals - also called tambours

Cymbals - Thin round concave metal plates

The Triangle - The triangle was a musical instrument introduced during the 14th century

The Tambourine - This musical instrument was traditionally used by a woman

The Tabor - a small drum used as an accompaniment to a pipe or fife, both being played by the same
person.

Timbrel - This musical instrument was also referred to as a tambourine and dates back to antiquity
Bells - the use of Bells also dates back to antiquity

Other Types of Medieval Musical Instruments

The Organistrum and the Pipe Organ were other types of Medieval Musical instruments as was the
Hurdy-Gurdy. The Hurdy-gurdy - the hurdy-gurdy was introduced to England during the 12th century
- the bow was replaced by strings attached to a wheel which was cranked by a handle.

Medieval Music - Medieval Musical Instruments

The Medieval Times website provides interesting facts, history and information about the musicians
and styles of music which scatter the history books including Medieval Musical Instruments. The
Medieval Life and Times Sitemap provides full details of all of the information and facts about the
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