Grade 2, Unit 1, Lesson 7

Carl Orff (1895–1982) built the first Orff instruments with his friend, instrument maker Karl Maendler (1872–1958). Orff based his design on handmade xylophones from other countries. He had seen a rectangular box from Cameroon with bars across the open side, and also instruments from an Indonesian Gamelan orchestra.

Today,three basic groups of barred instruments are part of the Orff instrument family, or Instrumentarium. These are the glockenspiel, metallophone, and xylophone. Below is a list of the instruments in each group.

Glockenspiels
Soprano Glockenspiel
Alto Glockenspiel

Metallophones
Soprano Metallophone
Alto Metallophone
Bass Metallophone

Xylophones
Soprano Metallophone
Alto Metallophone
Bass Xylophone

Orff wanted to make instruments that let players share music together. On Orff instruments, the bars can be arranged to play easy patterns. One person plays sparkling, bright patterns on the glockenspiel. Another plays long, ringing tones on the metallophone. A third plays crisp, quick rhythms on the xylophone. When all three patterns are played, the players grow together through music.

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