- glockenspiel
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/glok"euhn speel', -shpeel'/, n.a musical instrument composed of a set of graduated steel bars mounted in a frame and struck with hammers, used esp. in bands.[1815-25; < G, equiv. to Glocken bells + Spiel play]
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Percussion instrument consisting of a set of tuned steel bars, arranged like a piano keyboard, which are struck with hammers.An alternative form of the instrument is played by means of an actual keyboard. Its normal range is 212 octaves. The bell lyre, held vertically, is the portable form of glockenspiel used in marching bands.* * *
(German: “set of bells”), percussion instrument, originally a set of graduated bells, later a set of tuned steel bars (i.e., a metallophone) struck with wood, ebonite, or, sometimes, metal hammers. The bars are arranged in two rows, the second corresponding to the black keys of the piano. The range is 2 1/2 or, occasionally, 3 octaves, the highest note normally the fourth C above middle C (written two octaves lower). Military bands use a portable form with a lyre-shaped frame, called a bell lyre. A glockenspiel may be fitted with a keyboard mechanism so that chords can be played. The glockenspiel became part of the orchestra in the 18th century.The tubaphone is a softer-toned offspring of the glockenspiel. It is used in military bands and has metal tubes rather than bars.* * *
Universalium. 2010.