Lesson 1: Timbre
“Imagine, in the depths of your mind, what you think the greatest trombone sound in the world would be like. Use adjectives to describe this sound — beautiful, singing, fat, clear, rich, full, smooth, round, dark, centered, warm, etc. ”
Timbre!
Timbre, pronounced tam-burr, is a word that describes what something sounds like. Think about when you are home. If you hear someone in your family call your name you can tell who it is without having seen them.
This is because every sound has a distinct timbre. This can include things like the sound of cars on the street, the noise from your alarm clock, the sound of a doorbell, or the sound of a trombone. Every sound has deeper qualities to it. If we listen closely we can hear a vehicle on the street and learn to distinguish a truck versus a sedan. Our morning alarm might have more than one note sounding at once. A doorbell might be a stereotypical major 3rd interval. A trombone might sound bright or dull. Similar to hearing our name called, we can even learn to tell different trombonists apart based on their sound. JJ. Johnson sounds a lot different than Arthur Pryor who sounds different than Mark Lawrence. We start to hear the world around us when we learn to listen closely and understand what we hear.
Lesson Video
(Video released in full version; Available September 2026)
Activity 1 - Discovering Your Personal Soundscape
Find a space where you can be still and distraction free. It does not need to be a quiet space.
Set a timer for 90 seconds
Close your eyes and listen to the world around you during the 90 seconds
One the time is done, write down everything you heard and noticed
What sounds did you hear?
You might have noticed cars, people talking, music playing, radio, tv, an air conditing or heating unit, beeps of appliances, pets, and more.
Everything you heard has a distinct sound and makes-up your aural landcape. Try listening again for more sounds and see if you can describe what you heard in more detail.
Onward to Music!
Next we explore the sound of a trombone. Have you ever tried to describe the timbre of a trombone? Close your eyes and try to imagine what a trombone might sound like. Write down your description.
A trombone sounds like….
Hopefully you wrote many different words. Some might be similar and others might be opposites. That’s ok! A trombone, like all instruments, is not limited to only one type of sound. It is a spectrum of sounds. Musicians who play the trombone use the spectrum of sound to create their music. It is the rich diversity of sounds that creates music.