Triangle

General info:

The triangle is a percussion instrument. It is a bar of metal, usually steel but sometimes other metals like beryllium copper, bent into a triangle shape. One of the angles is left open, with the ends of the bar not quite touching. This causes the instrument to be of indeterminate or not settled or decided pitch. It is either suspended from one of the other corners by a piece of, most commonly, fishing line, leaving it free to vibrate, or hooked over the hand. It is usually struck with a metal beater, giving a high-pitched, ringing tone.

History:

The triangle was used in early Turkish Janissary music. It entered the European orchestras through the Turkish Janissary soldiers. Early drawings of the instrument show rings loosely hung which provided additional sound when struck. Until the end of the 18th century, it was used mainly to provide added color. It became a permanent part of the orchestra during the dawn of the 19th century, and evolved into a solo instrument in 1853 by Lizst in his Piano Concerto in E-flat.

Most triangles range in size from 4 to 10 inches in diameter. Since there is no fixed triangle size, it is the responsibility of the percussionists to select the triangle with the most suitable sonority for the piece. Although tht instrument does not provide any definite pitch, it tends to blend with the overall harmonic sound of the band or orchestra.

Range:

N.A.

Role:

The triangle has been used in the western classical orchestra since around the middle of the 18th century, usually in imitation of Janissary bands. The first piece to make the triangle really prominent was Franz Liszt's Piano Concerto No. 1, where it is used as a solo instrument in the third movement, giving this concerto the nickname of "triangle concerto".

Foreign names:

Triangel ----- German

Triangle ----- French

Triangolo ----- Italian

Famous pieces: