# The greatest tones



## Praeludium

Hello,

I know tone is something very subjective. That's why I think it'd be interesting to know, all instruments confounded, what do you think is a magical, unique, marvelous tone.
It can be piano, violin, organ, guitar, voice, I don't care.

That's also an opportunity to discover new musicians with an emphasis put on a not-so-usual standard.

Those are two personal favorites :






I've heard this recently and.. wow that's just amazing.






I love this sound - gut strings played with flesh. It has an organic quality that I love.


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## Dodecaplex

The erhu has the most beautiful tone I've ever heard. Sadly, not as many pieces are written for it as I'd like.

Meanwhile, we can entertain ourselves with this. (Erhu starts at 1:18)


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## jalex

Horn!


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## NightHawk

A chance to post some Gubaidulina and Yuri Bashmet! (Pt. 1 only)


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## NightHawk

I love this instrument! Its traditional way of playing is quite vocal sounding. Great clip!!



Dodecaplex said:


> The erhu has the most beautiful tone I've ever heard. Sadly, not as many pieces are written for it as I'd like.
> 
> Meanwhile, we can entertain ourselves with this. (Erhu starts at 1:18)


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## NightHawk

Gitlis' playing is really wonderful and the tone is magnificent. I have no recording by him, but will be amending that. Good Thread Topic.



Praeludium said:


> Hello,
> 
> I know tone is something very subjective. That's why I think it'd be interesting to know, all instruments confounded, what do you think is a magical, unique, marvelous tone.
> It can be piano, violin, organ, guitar, voice, I don't care.
> 
> That's also an opportunity to discover new musicians with an emphasis put on a not-so-usual standard.
> 
> Those are two personal favorites :
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I've heard this recently and.. wow that's just amazing.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I love this sound - gut strings played with flesh. It has an organic quality that I love.


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## NightHawk

I associate this symphony with LBernstein more than any other conductor. The horn solo is beautiful.



jalex said:


> Horn!


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## jalex

Other than horn, the clarinet and oboe are beautiful instruments.










Oboe works especially well in orchestras, it penetrates beautifully even when playing quietly. Clarinet is just unbelievably versatile.

Violins and cellos are great too, but they get plenty of glory anyway.


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## Dodecaplex

NightHawk said:


> I love this instrument! Its traditional way of playing is quite vocal sounding. Great clip!!


Yes, that's exactly what I love about the erhu. This vocal (often with sad music, called "wailing") sound can express both sadness and joy to such a great extent that I'm always amazed by it.

Here's a little erhu ditty from a video game I loved as a kid:


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## starthrower

I like Mark Lubotsky on violin.
Rostropovich on cello.
Mitsuko Uchida on piano.
Jessye Norman on vocals

and anybody who gets a great sound on clarinet.


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## Praeludium

Thanks for the replies !
I had a few misconception about the tone of instrument different than the guitar and the piano when I began studying music.
I'm happy to discover how beautiful all the instruments can actually sound !

The ehru is great. The kind of glissandi/portamenti remind me a bit the theremin/ondes martenot ^^ But it's obliviously different.


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## kv466

The tone Vassar Clements got on his fiddle was absolutely unbelievably gorgeous. This, and the tone Earl Wild achieved on his Baldwin recordings I find to be extraordinary as well. 

Those and the tones I can generate with a '62 Guild Starfire, a Mesa Boogie all-tube monster and an array of analog stompboxes as well.


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## Rasa




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## jalex

^There are few better sounds than trombones in harmony. Not great as solo instruments, though.


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## starthrower

kv466 said:


> The tone Vassar Clements got on his fiddle was absolutely unbelievably gorgeous.


You certainly couldn't mistake him for anybody else! Here's one of my favorite tunes he recorded with Tony Rice.






and here's a live one!


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## Meaghan

Clarinet, _when played extremely well_, has probably my favorite timbre of any instrument. I've heard very few people produce my favorite clarinet sound, though, even among highly acclaimed professionals. Almost everybody gets a little too bright sometimes. But at its best the clarinet is such a beautiful instrument.


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## clavichorder

I've always enjoyed the melancholic tone of the oboe. 

As for piano playing, the great and classic pianists can get some good tone! But it takes a rare talent to do that.


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## Philip

Dire straits - money for nothing (tone starts at 1:30)






Toccata and fugue played by michael murray, amazing recording






Play in HD. *You're welcome.*


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## opus55

kv466 said:


> Those and the tones I can generate with a '62 Guild Starfire, a Mesa Boogie all-tube monster and an array of analog stompboxes as well.


Can't beat the glowing tube tones. A big plus is that they keep the room warm in winter.


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## LordBlackudder

the pipe organ, horns, chimes, chorus.


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## kv466

The sound of a Gibson J-30 acoustic dreadnought guitar is pure tone magic.


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## Llyranor

Ah yes, the erhu. Definitely the erhu.


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## ComposerOfAvantGarde

Soprano saxophone playing music marked "dolce." Another one: prepared zither.


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## Crudblud

I don't think I've ever come across an instrument I didn't love the sound of. The only sounds I don't care for are flat electronic tones, i.e.: sine, sawtooth, triangle waves etc. and digital noise, they're just too flat for a three-dimensional world, you know?

My favourite sound in the world is an orchestra tuning up. My second favourite sound is the silence between midnight and three o'clock in the morning (depending on the season, perhaps four or five).


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