Wind machine

The wind machine is a belonging to the group of Idiophone effect instrument which is used in the music and theater to imitate wind and storm noises. The wind machine usually consists of a horizontally mounted rotating and occupied with brush cylinder which is driven by a hand crank and a tightened around the cylinder fixed belt made ​​of taffeta or similar materials stimulates to vibrate. The volume and to a limited extent, the pitch can be controlled by varying the rotation speed of the cylinder. In the orchestra, the wind machine belongs to the percussion, is thus served by the percussionists.

A well-known example of the use of a wind machine in the symphony orchestra is the tone poem Don Quixote by Richard Strauss, where Quixote in the 7th variation Don air ride is musically staged. For more usage examples: Don Quixote (Georg Philipp Telemann ), Les Boréades (Jean -Philippe Rameau ), An Alpine Symphony, Die Frau ohne Schatten ( Richard Strauss), Sinfonia Antartica ( Vaughan Williams), Daphnis and Chloé ( Ravel ).