Instruments

The Department of Music offers instrument loans to music students. The collection includes keyboards (pianos, organs, and period keyboards), orchestral instruments (wind, string, percussion, and early insruments), as well as instruments from around the world.

Keyboard instruments

The department has pianos in each practice room, seminar room, and performing space. In addition, we have many grand pianos, organs and early keyboards. Our collection includes:

  • Grand Pianos: 3 Steinways, 1 Fazioli, 2 Yamahas, 1 Bluthner, 1 Bechstein
  • Organs: Full Organ by Grant, Degens and Bradbeer, overhauled by J W Walker and Sons, in Sir Jack Lyons Concert Hall; Renshaw chamber organ. Full details: SJLCH organ specification (PDF , 50kb)
  • Harpsichords: a Flemish double manual (8',8',4') by Dennis Woolley, after Dulcken (c.1745); a Flemish single manual (8',8') by Woolley, after Delin (c.1755); and a single manual (8',8') 17th century Italian style instrument with a short bottom octave.
  • Fortepianos: a copy by Dennis Woolley of a 1795 Viennese original by Walter; a 1795 English fortepiano; an 1830 square piano by Broadwood.
  • Other Keyboards: Morley clavichord and a Goble spinet.

Orchestral instruments

We have a wide-range of orchestral instruments available for use by students in departmental ensembles. For a full list of available instruments, contact Jim Sharpe in the box office (8.30-11.30am). Enquiries about the percussion instruments should be made to Dr John Stringer.

  • Wind instruments: piccolo, alto flute, cor anglais, E flat clarinet, bass clarinet, contrabassoon, C/D trumpet, bass trombone, soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone
  • String instruments: contact Jim Sharpe
  • Percussion instruments: timpani (2 sets), baroque timpani, vibraphones (2), marimba, xylorimba, xylophone, glockenspiels (2), tubular bells, celeste, Adams temple blocks (6), Adams Granite blocks (5), suspended cymbals (15+), tam tams (2), full ranges of tom toms, timbales, roto toms, over 50 handheld percussion instruments
  • Early and medieval instruments: contact Jim Sharpe

Non-western instruments

The department houses instrument sets from all over the world including Asia and Africa. These include:

  • Javanese: gamelan ensemble
  • Thai: pi-phat ensemble
  • Ghanaian: Ewe drums
  • Indian: sitar, tabla, tambura, vina, sarod, sarangi, flute, harmonium
  • Japanese: shakuhachi, koto, samisen
  • Oriental: zithers from China, Korea, and Japan