What are Orff instruments?

The creator of Orff music: Carl Orff has made the combination of movement and music closely, creating Orff music.

Orff, itself is not a brand, but a general term for a category of musical instruments.

Orff teaching method is just a teaching system with no age restrictions. There are specialized colleges abroad to learn it. It just helps us better understand and learn music.

In Orff's teaching, it is generally not used piano, violin and other instruments, but uses refined percussion instruments. There are two types: one with fixed pitch that can play melodies, and the other with no fixed pitch that plays rhythm.
     
Instrument without fixed pitch in ensemble composition is not without method. It is generally based on four categories.

Wooden instruments: single and double kettles, wooden sticks, wooden fish, frog boxes, etc. The sound is clear and bright, without a lingering sound.
2. Percussion instruments: Sandblocks, Rattles, Sound characteristics: Low volume, scattered sound, can sustain long notes.
Leather instruments: Various drum-type instruments. They typically have resonant sounds, low tones, and a loud volume.
Metal instruments: Triangles, claves, etc., with the main feature of a sustained sound, clear and crisp.
In addition, there are many percussion instruments with unique sounds, such as the frog-call tube. Especially, in each country's percussion music, there are some instruments with very unique sounds, such as various Chinese gongs and cymbals, which can be added to the above instrument group to add characteristics.
In music education, it is also emphasized to involve hands-on activities—making your own musical instruments. By personally crafting instruments, children can begin to understand the principles of how instruments produce sound and the construction of instruments from a sensorial perspective. Among various instruments, it is easiest to make percussion instruments, such as using a can as a drum, putting sand in a paper cup for a rattle, or stringing together bottle caps as a jingle. Even a pair of chopsticks can be used as a wooden instrument, and a box or bucket that makes a sound can be used as a drum-type instrument. When children play a percussion ensemble they have designed using the percussion instruments they have made, their experience, the joy and interest they feel is no less than using real instruments. This creative and inventive process also perfectly cultivates children's hands-on skills and creativity.
The second category of Orff instruments are those with fixed pitch. The sound bar instruments mainly include wooden high, medium, and low woodxans and metal high, medium, and low aluminum plates (or steel sheets, etc. synthetic metals), as well as smaller xans with higher and clearer sounds. There are also a small number of string instruments in the Orff instrument ensemble, mainly referring to low-pitched string instruments with only two strings, such as the larger cello.

About Orff Music:

Orff teaching method is one of the world-renowned music education systems in the contemporary world. Its lively and colorful teaching forms have received high praise and love from colleagues around the world, and it is also very popular with children, thus spreading widely around the world. Orff music teaching is a comprehensive teaching, which not only allows children to learn music and cultivate their music abilities, but also has enlightening effects on multiple aspects such as language, imitation, and creativity.

Orff music teaching is an active teaching method that suits the learning characteristics of young children, enabling them to learn music happily, to love music, and to encourage them to express themselves and innovate.

The Basic Contents of Orff Music Education:
 
1. Listening training.
2. Rhythm Training: Finding Rhythm with Percussion Instruments and Their Applications.
3. Rhythm Training: Training and application of sound, form, and games.
4. Language Learning: As a training and application of music language teaching.
5. Cultivating Creative Ability.
6. Orff instrument practice: rhythm, bar instruments, recorder, keyboard training.

Through the music and dance arts such as speaking, singing, dancing, playing, dramatic performances, painting, etc., students can discover themselves, cultivate their creativity, self-confidence, concentration, teamwork spirit, reaction ability, and the development of the whole personality.
Through the Orff approach to music education, introverted babies became more outgoing; timid babies became brave; loners became more sociable; shy babies became more confident.
When they hear music, even in the presence of strangers, they can't help but start dancing and moving their feet, and it's so in sync;
When they hear the intro of the song, they will sing the learned nursery rhyme accurately, and accompany it with improvised singing performances.
When they hear different rhythms of drums, they play along with music they have never heard before, and it is so harmonious.
They can seamlessly integrate into group life and are among the fastest learners in the class.
 
Some babies have joined various kindergarten art groups, and their musical perception ability, emotional expression ability, collective collaboration ability, and ability to complete rehearsals are very outstanding.