brass
A family of instruments made of metal, played by buzzing the lips into a mouthpiece.
In Depth
Brass instruments produce sound through lip vibration — the player buzzes their lips into a cup-shaped mouthpiece, and the instrument's tubing amplifies and shapes the resulting sound. The main orchestral brass instruments are the trumpet, French horn, trombone, and tuba, spanning from brilliant highs to rumbling lows.
The brass family is united by its method of sound production rather than its material — the serpent (made of wood) and the didgeridoo (made of eucalyptus) are technically brass instruments by this definition. Modern brass instruments use either valves (trumpet, horn, tuba) or a slide (trombone) to change pitch. A brass section at full volume is the most powerful force in the orchestra.
A trumpet playing fortissimo produces about 95 decibels — roughly equivalent to a motorcycle engine. Brass players in orchestras sometimes use earplugs to protect their hearing.