How the wind chime makes its sound
In the Hornbostel–Sachs system, which classifies instruments by how they produce sound, the wind chime belongs to the struck idiophones: the body is struck directly – bells, gongs, xylophones and cymbals.
More broadly it is one of the idiophones, where the solid body of the instrument itself vibrates, without strings or a stretched membrane.
Players shape its sound through technique and materials; the resonating body filters the raw vibration, boosting some harmonics and damping others.
From Wikipedia
Wind chimes are a type of percussion instrument constructed from suspended tubes, rods, bells, or other objects that are often made of metal or wood. The tubes or rods are suspended along with some type of weight or surface which the tubes or rods can strike when they or another wind-catching surface are blown by the natural movement of air outside.
They are usually hung outside of a building or residence as a visual and aural garden ornament. Since the percussion instruments are struck according to the random effects of the wind blowing the chimes, wind chimes have been considered an example of chance-based music. The tubes or rods may sound either indistinct pitches, or fairly distinct pitches. Wind chimes that sound fairly distinct pitches can, through the chance movement of air, create simple songs or broken chords.
Other struck idiophones
Frequently asked questions
What does a wind chime sound like?
As one of the struck idiophones, its sound comes from the way the body is struck directly.
What type of instrument is the wind chime?
It is classified as struck idiophones (Hornbostel–Sachs 111.2).
Sources & credits
- Wikidata Q1621499 – CC0
- Wikipedia: Wind chime – CC BY-SA 4.0
- Image by Esc861 – Public domain