Musical instruments for children - how to choose according to the child’s age, manufacturer and material of manufacture. "Merry Orchestra"

Content

Manufacturers offer a wide range of children's educational toys to choose from, designed for children of different ages: from birth, from 3 years old, from 6 years old, etc. Toy musical instruments for children are quite popular – a child will be delighted with the opportunity to play a children’s guitar or drum. They are suitable for both boys and girls. Classes with them contribute to the development of a sense of rhythm, creative skills, memory, ear for music and hand motor skills.

Kinds

Children's musical toys, like instruments for adults, are divided into several groups. The right choice will help introduce your baby to the world of music. Teaching children with educational toys will help teach them to make sounds that others will like from an early age. Compared to their adult counterparts, children's sets are easier to use - children can play them independently without the help of parents. Instruments for young musicians are divided into:

• noise;
• drums;
• winds;
• keyboards;
• strings

Noise

A set of musical instruments for children in this category is easy to use, so your child will not have any problems using it. With their help, you can get sounds in classes and during games that are not produced by keyboard or wind analogues. A popular option is a rattle, with which the baby can make loud noise, creating a sound effect. The sounds of the rattle perfectly complement dance compositions and create the necessary national style and flavor. Other children's noise musical instruments:

• tambourines;
• rattles;
• castanets;
• maracas;
• wooden spoons;
• rubles.

Drums

The instruments chosen for preschool children will, over time, develop an ear for music and a sense of rhythm in the baby. In the future he can become a real musician. An interesting preference might be a set of percussion products. The sound is produced by a stretched membrane (tambourine, drum) or the body of the product (triangles, gongs). A special group of percussion instruments includes instruments capable of producing a sound of a certain pitch: bells, xylophones, etc. Popular children's percussion instruments:

• drums;
• diamonds;
• triangles;
• bells;
• xylophones, etc.

Brass

The sound in wind instruments is produced as a result of vibrations of a column of air, which is enclosed inside the tube. The larger the air volume, the lower the sound will be. Wind instruments can be made of wood (flutes, bassoons, clarinets) or brass (trumpets, trombones). By opening and closing the holes with your fingers, you can shorten the column of air to change the pitch of the sound. Modern wind instruments are often not made of wood, but traditionally they are called woodwinds. Popular among children's analogues are:

• flutes;
• pipes;
• pipes;
• pipes;
• saxophones;
• clarinets;
• harmonicas.

Keyboards

Keyboard instruments attract a lot of attention from kids, one of the popular and widespread options of which is the piano. The first keyboards - harpsichords and clavichords - appeared in the Middle Ages. They sounded quietly, but tenderly and romantically. The organ, the largest and one of the ancient musical instruments, also belongs to this category. Compared to other keyboards, the organ is considered a keyboard-wind organ. Popular options for children include:

• piano;
• synthesizers;
• accordions.

Strings

Your child can play funny melodies not only on wind instruments or keyboards, but also on stringed musical instruments. The sound is produced by a vibrating string. To strengthen it, strings began to be pulled over a hollow body, resulting in the appearance of a mandolin, harp, lute, cymbals and the guitar that is well known to everyone. String products are either bowed or plucked. For the former, a bow is required, which is passed along stretched strings - violins, violas, double basses, cellos. Widespread string options for children are guitars and violins.

What types of toy musical instruments are there?

On sale in Moscow, St. Petersburg and other cities of the country you can find many interesting children's guitars, pianos, drums, etc., painted in bright colors. You can order a suitable gift for a young musician in a specialized online store with delivery by mail. For example, an interesting choice is a children's piano set with a microphone and a high chair. No less suitable options are a tambourine, xylophone, guitar with an amplifier and microphones, maracas, castanets. If there are two or three children, then you will have a whole noise orchestra at home.

Children's piano with microphone and chair

The very first professional choice for a young musician over 3 years old can be an electronic piano. It’s good if the set includes a microphone and a chair. The piano for children develops hearing, fine motor skills, and creativity - suitable for boys and girls from one year old. The former are characterized by bright blue and blue colors, the latter by pink. The toy is characterized by a deep, clear sound. Some models have built-in funny songs, voices of cartoon characters and animals. Sometimes there are voice and sound recording functions, and the ability to connect headphones.

Rattles-pipes

When you decide to buy a play set for your baby that will develop an ear for music, take a closer look at the rattle-pipe. It will cheer up your child or help calm him down before nightfall and promote sound sleep after a fun time. The musical rattle, which many parents give to their children in early childhood, is made of bright plastic in the shape of a pipe. There are buttons on the top - the baby presses them, and the pipe starts making funny sounds. This toy will not let your baby get bored. Suitable for babies (0-12 months).

Children's drum

Musical instruments for children in the form of a drum are exactly what a child needs to be happy. Children learn not only to make loud sounds from the drum, creating noise, but also try to form a sense of rhythm and develop hearing. By learning to control sticks, children develop fine motor skills and learn to coordinate their movements. The body is often decorated with colorful images. It is convenient to hang the drum over your shoulder, because... it comes with a strap. Certified products are made from high quality plastic. Suitable for children from 3 years old.

Maracas and castanets

Children's maracas and castanets can become a powerful competitor to drums. It's easier to extract sound from them - you just need to shake them. This greatly attracts children who are ready to shake maracas for hours on end. The principle of playing them is similar to playing with simple rattle toys. Such musical instruments for children will help them learn how to beat a rhythm. Inside there is a special rattling element that creates a characteristic sound when shaken. Maracas and castanets are intended for children aged 2-3 years.

Tambourine and xylophone

A xylophone consists of several bars and plates of different sizes. Each element corresponds to a specific sound key, note. The children's version of the xylophone is very popular with children, because he is capable of making original sounds. The essence of playing it is to hit each plate in a certain order, armed with sticks with round spherical ends. The basic principle is to alternate strikes with both hands. A xylophone is made from wood, plastic, or a combination of both materials. Age category – from 1.5-3 years.

You can help your child get acquainted with the world of music in such an accessible and simple way as playing the tambourine. It is comfortable and easy to hold in your hand, and the sounds it makes will definitely delight your baby. He will want to constantly play the tambourine. The product has a round shape. By playing with it, the baby will train his hearing, rhythm, and improve tactile perception. To play you need to shake the tambourine to the beat of the music or hit its surface. The product is often decorated with colorful designs, for example, in the form of animals. The age category of most models is from 3 years.

Guitar with microphone and amplifier

An interesting purchase would be an electronic guitar, in addition to which there is a microphone and an amplifier. This set is what an aspiring star needs. The shape of the guitar is made comfortable for children's hands. The product is equipped with a built-in speaker connected to a microphone. A guitar is a great choice for kids who love to sing and have their voice heard through the speaker. The volume is adjusted at the discretion of the young musician. Durable plastic, painted with safe dyes, is used for manufacturing. Age category – from 4 years.

How to choose

When choosing musical instruments for children, decide on the appropriate type. Percussion has a positive effect on the baby's vestibular apparatus: triangles, tambourines, drums, xylophones. Wind instruments (pipes, trumpets, harmonicas) contribute to the development of the lungs and strengthen the respiratory system. Playing the pipe trains your vocal cords. To develop fine motor skills and coordinated hand movements, give preference to keyboard musical instruments for children. String analogues will help in the development of hand coordination in older children.

Manufacturer

Musical instruments for children from well-known brands, as a rule, are somewhat more expensive than others. At the same time, they are more reliable in terms of the quality and safety of the materials used, because a well-known manufacturer will not sell bad products to the detriment of its brand. Popular, common brands include:

• Vtech;
• Cottons;
• Djeco;
• Tomik;
• Fisher-Price
• Tongle;
• Zhorya;
• Keenway;
• Toy;
• Shantou Gepai et al.

Age group and gender

When choosing musical instruments for children, take into account the gender and age of your child. Products for girls are often painted pink, and for boys - blue or light blue. In fact, there is no tangible difference between them. As for age, percussion instruments are more suitable for children aged 3-4 years. Whistles and pipes are the best option for children under 2 years old. The flute is suitable for a three-year-old child, and the harmonica is suitable for a four-year-old child. Among the keyboards there are models for both one-year-olds and older children. It makes sense to buy string toys for a 4-5 year old child.

Material of manufacture

Musical instruments for children made of plastic are the most common. They are inexpensive, but they can hardly be called strong and durable. Wood is a natural, but more expensive material that will last longer. There are products made from one specific material, for example, metal: triangle, harmonica. Some options are made from different materials, for example, a whistle - a ceramic or wooden model is preferable to a plastic one.

Where can I buy

You can buy a children's harmonica for your baby's first acquaintance with the world of music, a wooden drum, a guitar or another instrument at retail outlets that specialize in selling toys. In recent years, parents have given preference to online stores, where they can place an order in a matter of minutes without leaving home. Try to look for the best purchase in large stores, where promotions and sales are not uncommon. Today, even online stores (many) offer discounts to attract customers.

How much are

The price of musical instruments for children varies greatly depending on the place of sale, manufacturer, quality of materials used and other parameters. The age category is of no small importance. Before you buy a children's piano, guitar or anything else, check out the prices:

Neonila Berdnikova

Target: active involvement in music, development of interest and love for elementary music playing;

Tasks:

Creating prerequisites for the development of creative thinking;

Development of the emotional sphere of children, encouraging manifestations of creative imagination;

Development of auditory attention;

Development of auditory perception of sounds produced by various fillers hidden in containers;

The most accessible, and therefore children's favorite, are noise musical instruments. They make the child hear the world of sounds in a new way. There are many sounds around us, and they are so different! Playing homemade musical instruments, children understand: everything that surrounds us sounds, and every sound can become music. You just have to try to hear this music. Sound and appearance attract children tools, and the fact that they can independently, without anyone’s help, extract sounds from them. Such games with sounds are the primary form of improvisation. Of particular interest to children are tools that you can do yourself. Moreover, we note, without any special material costs!

Colleagues, I want to bring to your attention my homemade children's music and noise toys. They are made from improvised, waste material from which sound can be extracted. A little desire and imagination, and as a result we get beautiful "noise makers", "knocks", "rustles", "ringers". As mentioned above, special materials for the manufacture no tools needed, everything you have at hand will be used. As we say, “What, they didn’t take it to the trash heap”…

The most common children's noise instrument- noise makers and rattles. These ones are made from ice cream containers.

The filler is various cereals, beads, buttons, and metal nuts. I started using it actively in the nursery.

Children enthusiastically use them for voiceovers. musical pieces, develop auditory attention by comparing the sound of two "berry". Getting to know sound dynamics for the first time (loudly - quietly rattle the rattle). For older people the task becomes more complicated: I suggest listening to the sound of the berries and finding pairs that sound the same.

But let me introduce the Gremelkin family.

Mom and Dad made their empty fabric softener bottles, kids. (there can be any number of them)– from yogurt bottles "Immunele". For the production of this cheerful it took the family literally half an hour. It took me longer to collect suitable material. I glued on running eyes, made a mouth out of colored self-adhesive, rosy cheeks, knitted noses from thin yarn, and gave it characteristic distinctive features. "to dad" (tie) And "to mom" (hat, hair). The filling is made of buttons of different sizes.

This family can be used in speech games with preschoolers to develop imagination (sound with a voice, you can beat out a rhythmic pattern ( “Mom Gremelkina teaches children to dance”, use puppets to determine sound dynamics ( Music sounds loud - the family is loud, if the sound is quiet - the family is too "sounds" quiet). It can also be used to develop auditory memory ( "Guess whose voice").

Another option for noise-rattles is the testicles of the Ryaba Hen.

Musical The testicles lie in the nest for the time being, and if necessary, you can take them and rattle them. Used it several times as a surprise moment for kids. First Chicken Ryaba "brings" testicles, with the help of which Russian folk melodies are voiced, and then the testicles are changed to real kinder surprises.

Great « tool» shaker-type made from chip cylinders.

Decorate with colored self-adhesive paper, fill one third with beans, peas or other bulk material and you can make some great noise!

Making pistachio bracelets also does not require additional costs.

You just need to drill a hole in the shell and string the pistachio shells onto a thick fishing line. And if you decorate the bracelets with strips of corrugated paper, this will give the possibility of additional sound production - rustling.

As an option « music bracelet» - bracelet made of walnut shells.

And these funny The bracelets are made from hair ties and small bells.

With the help of bracelets, you can create musical a picture of a winter forest, a troika with bells, etc. T. Musical bracelets can also be used to perform various dancing: mischievous parsleys, fairy-tale bunnies, dolls and other characters of the New Year's carnival, participants in a fairy-tale performance, etc. can dance with them. The game is based on this « instrument» Perfectly develops a sense of rhythm, creativity, and motor skills.

This noise tool made from Kinder Surprise cells and glass balls.

It's very interesting to use it to voice stories. Can "crunch" cell, gently pressing it with your thumbs, twirl the balls, rattle, vigorously shaking.

And this one" tool"made from a glass bottle and large beads. The children even came up with a name for it - “butbus” (bottle+beads)

So unusual, one might say, mysterious musical instruments really attract children's attention. Preschoolers learn about the world through play, so give them some musical instruments, even the most simple: rattles, drums, tambourines, rattles, mallets, wooden spoons, bells.

We are playing orchestra! And let the whole world wait!

Thanks to musical instruments, we can produce music - one of the most unique creations of man. From trumpet to piano and bass guitar, they have been used to create countless complex symphonies, rock ballads and popular songs.

However, this list contains some of the strangest and most bizarre musical instruments that exist on the planet. And, by the way, some of them are from the category of “does this even exist?”

So here are 25 truly strange musical instruments - in sound, design or, most often, both.

25. Vegetable Orchestra

Formed almost 20 years ago by a group of friends interested in instrumental music, the Vegetable Orchestra in Vienna has become one of the strangest instrumental groups on the planet.

The musicians make their instruments before each performance - entirely from vegetables such as carrots, eggplants, leeks - to create a completely unusual performance that the audience can only see and hear.

24. Music Box


Construction equipment is most often noisy and annoying with its rumble, in strong contrast to a small music box. But one massive music box has been created that combines both.

This nearly one-ton vibratory compactor has been redesigned to spin just like a classic music box. He can play one famous tune - “The Star-Spangled Banner” (US anthem).

23. Cat piano


I would like to hope that the cat piano never becomes a real invention. Published in a book about strange and bizarre musical instruments, the "Katzenklavier" (also known as the cat piano or cat organ) is a musical instrument in which cats are seated in an octave according to the tone of their voice.

Their tails are extended towards the keyboard with nails. When the key is pressed, the nail presses painfully on the tail of one of the cats, which produces the desired sound.

22. 12-neck guitar


It was pretty cool when Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page played a double-neck guitar on stage. I wonder what it would be like if he played that 12-neck guitar?

21. Zeusaphone


Imagine creating music from electrical arcs. Zeusophone does just that. Known as the "Singing Tesla Coil", this unusual musical instrument produces sound by altering visible flashes of electricity, creating a futuristic-sounding electronic instrument.

20. Yaybahar


Yaybahar is one of the strangest musical instruments that came from the Middle East. This acoustic instrument has strings connected to coiled springs that are stuck into the center of the drum frames. When the strings are played, the vibrations echo throughout the room, like echoing in a cave or inside a metal sphere, creating a hypnotic sound.

19. Sea organ


There are two large sea organs in the world - one in Zadar (Croatia) and the other in San Francisco (USA). They both work in a similar way - with a series of pipes absorbing and amplifying the sound of the waves, making the sea and its vagaries the main performer. The sounds that the sea organ makes have been compared to the sound of water entering the ears and the didgeridoo.

18. Pupa (Chrysalis)


The dolly is one of the most beautiful instruments in this list of strange musical instruments. Modeled after the massive, round, stone Aztec calendar, the instrument's wheel rotates in a circle with strings taut, producing a sound similar to a perfectly tuned zither.

17. Janko Keyboard


Janko's keyboard looks like a long, irregular chessboard. Developed by Paul von Jankó, this alternative arrangement of piano keys allows pianists to play pieces of music that would be impossible to play on a standard keyboard.

Although the keyboard looks quite difficult to play, it produces the same number of sounds as a standard keyboard and is easier to learn to play because changing the key only requires the player to move their hands up or down, without having to change fingerings.

16. Symphony House


Most musical instruments are portable, and the Symphony House is definitely not one of them! In this case, the musical instrument is an entire house in Michigan with an area of ​​575 square meters.

From the opposite windows that allow the sounds of nearby coastal waves or the noise of the forest to penetrate, to the wind blowing through the long strings of a distinctive harp, the entire house resonates with sound.

The largest musical instrument in the house is two 12-meter horizontal beams made of anegri wood with strings stretched along them. When the strings are played, the entire room vibrates, giving the person the feeling of being inside a giant guitar or cello.

15. Theremin

Theremin is one of the very first electronic instruments, patented in 1928. Two metal antennas determine the position of the performer's hands, changing the frequency and volume, which are converted from electrical signals into sounds.

14. Uncello

More like the model of the universe proposed by Nicolaus Copernicus in the 16th century, the unzello is a combination of wood, pegs, strings and an amazing custom resonator. Instead of a traditional cello body that amplifies the sound, the unzello uses a round fishbowl to produce sounds as the bow is played across the strings.

13. Hydrolophone


The hydrolophone is a new age musical instrument created by Steve Mann that emphasizes the importance of water and serves the visually impaired as a sensory exploration device.

Essentially, it is a massive water organ that is played by plugging small holes with your fingers, from which water slowly flows, hydraulically creating the traditional organ sound.

12. Bikelophone


The Baiklophone was built in 1995 as part of a project to explore new sounds. Using a bicycle frame as a base, this musical instrument creates layered sounds using a loop recording system.

It is constructed with bass strings, wood, metal telephone bells and more. The sound it produces is truly incomparable because it produces a wide range of sounds from harmonious melodies to sci-fi intros.

11. Earth Harp


Somewhat similar to the Symphony House, the Earth Harp is the world's longest stringed instrument. A harp with stretched strings 300 meters long produces sounds similar to a cello. A musician wearing cotton gloves coated with violin rosin plucks the strings with his hands, creating an audible wave of compression.

10. Great Stalacpipe Organ


Nature is full of sounds that are pleasant to our ears. Combining human ingenuity and design with natural acoustics, Leland W. Sprinkle installed a custom lithophone in Luray Caverns, Virginia, USA.

The organ produces sounds of varying tones using tens of thousands of years old stalactites that have been converted into resonators.

9. Serpent


This bassy wind instrument, with a brass mouthpiece and finger holes like a woodwind, was so named because of its unusual design. The curving shape of the Snake allows it to produce a unique sound, reminiscent of a cross between a tuba and a trumpet.

8. Ice Organ


The Swedish Ice Hotel, built entirely of ice in winter, is one of the most famous boutique hotels in the world. In 2004, American ice sculptor Tim Linhart accepted an offer to build a musical instrument that would fit the hotel's theme.

As a result, Linart created the world's first ice organ - an instrument with pipes entirely carved from ice. Unfortunately, the life of this unusual musical instrument was short-lived - it melted last winter.

7. Aeolus


Looking like an instrument modeled after Tina Turner's bad hairstyle, the aeolus is a huge arch with many pipes that catches every breath of wind and converts it into sound, often produced in the rather eerie tones associated with a UFO landing.

6. Nellophone


If the previous unusual musical instrument resembles Tina Turner's hair, then this one can be compared to the tentacles of a jellyfish. To play a nellophone, which is constructed entirely of curved pipes, the performer stands in the center and strikes the pipes with special paddles, thereby producing the sound of the air resonating within them.

5. Sharpsichord

One of the most complex and strange musical instruments on this list, the sharpsichord has 11,520 holes with pegs inserted into them and resembles a music box.

When the solar-powered cylinder turns, a lever rises to pluck the strings. The power is then transferred to the jumper, which amplifies the sound using a large horn.

4. Pyrophone Organ

This list covers many different types of repurposed organs, and this one might be the best of them all. Unlike using stalactites or ice, the pyrophonic organ produces sounds by creating mini-explosions with each keystroke.

Hitting the key of a propane and gasoline-powered pyrophonic organ provokes exhaust from the pipe, like a car engine, thereby creating sound.

3. Fence. Any fence.


Few people in the world can claim to be a “fence-playing musician.” In fact, only one person can do this - Australian Jon Rose (already sounds like the name of a rock star), creating music on fences.

Rose uses a violin bow to create resonating sounds on tightly strung "acoustic" fences, ranging from barbed wire to chain link fences. Some of his most provocative performances include playing on the border fence between Mexico and the United States, and between Syria and Israel.

2. Cheese Drums


A combination of two human passions - music and cheese - these cheese drums are a truly wonderful and very strange group of instruments.

Their creators took a traditional drum kit and replaced all the drums with massive round heads of cheese, placing a microphone next to each to produce more delicate sounds.

For most of us, their sound will be more like the drumsticks of an amateur drummer sitting in a local Vietnamese restaurant.

1. Loophonium

As a small tuba-like bass musical instrument that plays a leading role in brass and military bands, the euphonium is not such a strange instrument.

That is, until Fritz Spiegl of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra created the toiletphonium: a fully functioning combination of a euphonium and a beautifully painted toilet.