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How does the Sachs-Hornbostel system classify wind instruments?
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wind instrument
The Japanese end-blown flute, or shakuhachi.
The Sachs-Hornbostel system classifies all instruments that use air as the primary vibrating medium as aerophones, regardless of their cultural context or material. This system categorizes them based on their acoustical principles and manner of tone production.1
Aerophones are primarily divided into two groups:
- Free aerophones: Instruments where the vibrating air is not contained within a tube, such as the bull-roarer, accordions, and free reed stops in organs.1
- Wind instruments proper: Instruments where the vibrating air is contained within a tube. These are further subdivided into three categories:1
- Edge instruments (flutes): Sound is produced by directing an airstream against a sharp edge, setting an air column into vibration. This includes true flutes and whistle flutes (e.g., recorders and vessel flutes).1
- Reed instruments (reedpipes): Sound is produced by vibrations between parts of a reed or a reed and a mouthpiece. Multiple reeds are classified as oboes, while single reeds are classified as clarinets.1
- Trumpet-type aerophones: Sound is produced by the vibration of the player’s compressed lips. These are classified by bore shape (cylindrical trumpets or conical horns), mouth hole position, presence of a mouthpiece, and construction for chromatic playing.1