Hello friends. We’re the Ostmo family, and we love learning about countries and people. Our oldest daughter, Melaya, has tons of friends all around the world  and today she’s been talking to her friend Stefan from Germany.

Stefan Dreams of Being in an Orchestra 

Last time they spoke, Stefan said he wants to join an orchestra and has been taking trombone lessons. He said a trombone is a brass instrument that can be played with a slide and can play many different notes. Stefan loves how the trombone can produce harmonious tones.

Harmonious means pleasant sounding and that’s why the trombone is Stefan’s favorite instrument.

Stefan said he has been practicing daily and now he is way better than he ever was. He dreams about being a member of an orchestra to play in front of a lot of people.

What instrument would you like to play if you were in an orchestra?

The Tuba is Catriona’s Favorite Brass Instrument

Now, in the Philippines, over 6,000 miles away from London, lives another of Melaya’s friends, Catriona. She and Melaya chatted a while ago and she told Melaya that her favorite brass instrument is the tuba. She said the tuba is raucous and she likes how loud it sounds. It reminds her of an elephant. Catriona is a big fan of the tuba. She’s so fond of it that she said she would like to learn how to play one.

However, Catriona doesn’t have a tuba but she hopes her parents will gift her one for her birthday. Her favorite pastime is watching youtube videos of people playing the tuba.

What is your favorite pastime?

Freyja’s Mom is a Professional Trumpeter

Melaya has a friend named Freyja from Scandinavia. She was telling Melaya about her mom who is a professional Trumpeter. Freyja says her mum has been playing the trumpet for over 20 years and she is really good at it. She said her mom has gotten a lot of awards for her groundbreaking performance. Groundbreaking means something is innovative or that has never been done before, like some of the things Freyja’s mom has been doing with the trumpet. Freyja loves listening to her mom play and wishes to learn how to play the trumpet too. She says the trumpet is her favorite instrument because it’s loud, clear, and melodic. 

Charlotte’s Harmonious Mellophone

Now, in the United States, lives a girl named Charlotte, who’s also Melaya’s friend. Charlotte is in the school band and she plays the Mellophone. She loves it because it sounds very similar to a trumpet but is easier to play. She said the difference between a mellophone and a trumpet is that the mellophone is a bit smaller and easier to play. 

That the mellophone is what they call a hybrid instrument because it is a mix between the trumpet and flugelhorn. If you want to play in a band but can’t carry around the weight of a trumpet, then this instrument might be right for you.

Charlotte says that the best part about playing in a band is getting to perform at different competitions and festivals. 

Does your school have a band? 

Claire is Very Skilled With Her French Horn 

Melaya has a friend named Claire who lives in France, a European country over 500 miles from London! Claire’s favorite instrument is the French horn, which is an instrument with a very big bell and a curved mouthpiece. It’s hard to play the French horn because it takes so much breath to blow into it, but Claire says it is worth the effort. She said playing the French horn in an orchestra is the best thing! Claire said she loves the French horn because it sounds so rich and full, and it’s the only instrument that can play high notes and low notes at the same time!

That’s because the French horn has a slide that can be moved up or down to change the pitch. 

Melaya thinks the French horn is very pretty, but it sounds so different from all the other instruments that she doesn’t think she could learn to play it.

Melaya also loves brass instruments but she doesn’t know how to play any of them, she said she would like to take some music classes and learn the Euphonium and the Bugle.

Tell us in the comments what your favorite brass instruments are! If you want to learn more about this topic, make sure to download the activity pack. We have flashcards, a learning guide, handwriting sheets, and drawings pages all dedicated to various brass instruments!

Melaya loves chatting with kids from all over the world! If you want to teach Melaya about where you live or your favorite activities, please tell your mom or dad to use @learningtail on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok to get in touch with us.