Clarinets are an important part of concert bands, which are also referred to as wind ensembles.
Concert bands have a long and storied history, and in the United States, they are often tied to the military. Well-known examples of concert bands, which are also known as wind ensembles or wind symphonies, are the Dallas Wind Symphony and the U.S. Army Field Band. These bands are comprised of three distinct types of instruments: woodwinds, brass and percussion. The sizes of the bands vary, but may include 100 musicians or more.
Woodwind instruments
Saxophones are among the many instruments that comprise a concert band.
Although not every band has the same configuration, many of the instruments are similar. One subgroup of instruments are the woodwinds, which the Oregon Symphony describes as narrow cylinders with holes. Air, the "wind" of woodwinds, is pushed through the instrument by the player. One example of a concert band, the U.S. Navy Band, features the following woodwind instruments: a piccolo, four flutes, three oboes/English horns, an E-flat clarinet, 14 B-flat clarinets, a bass clarinet, a contra alto clarinet, two bassoons, three alto saxophones, two tenor saxophones and two baritone saxophones.
Brass instruments
A trombone, and sometimes more than one, can be featured in a concert band.
Brass instruments are, like the name suggests, often made of brass. They are a series of tubes and pipes and make a noise as the player pushes air through the instrument while making a buzzing sound with the lips. The Navy Band employs 16 trumpet or coronet players, seven French horn players, eight trombone players, two bass trombone players, four euphonium players and five tuba players.
Percussion instruments
Concerts bands also use a number of percussion instruments and have several musicians dedicated to those instruments. Percussion instruments can be defined as "any instrument that makes a sound when it is hit, shaken or scraped." Examples of concert band percussion instruments include cymbals, bass drums, suspended cymbals, concert bass drums, triangle and tambourine. Many concert bands also prominently feature timpani drums.
