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Instruments used during the Renaissance period

Renaissance period has a rich singing history. During the early part of the Renaissance era, people preferred to just sing instead of using medical instruments. However, in the later stages, musicians started to experiment and instrumental music were quite popular. Historians were able to find many unique instruments belonging to this era .Here are some of the instruments used during the Renaissance period.

1. Viols: Viols were one of the most important instruments during the Renaissance period. They are like violins and you have to play it with a box. However, the sound is just a bit different and there are 4 strings instead of 6. They also came in different kinds of shapes and sizes. One of the size was called the viola da gamba. It was quite big and slightly difficult to play. Viols were generally played during the royal dinners.

2. Natural Trumpet: This was another very common instrument during the Renaissance period. It is different from the trumpets we use today in the sense that it only plays the notes at the highest harmonics. It was generally used during the times of war.

3. Horn: Made with wood, the horn was one of the most common wind instruments in that time. Since it is quite loud, it was also used during the times of war. In the big cities, it was also used to declare beginning of the curfew. The good thing is that it is quite easy to play and doesn’t require much skill.

4. Organs: During the Renaissance period, the organs were of two kinds- One was large and stayed in a fixed place and the other was small and easily portable. In both the types, the arrangement of the pipes were the same. The longest pipe was in the bass and the shortest in the treble. The fixed Organ was mainly used during choir.

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