Mute

What it means

A mute is a device that makes an instrument's sound quieter while also altering its tone color, usually toward something sharper, more veiled, or nasal. Unlike simply playing softer, a mute acts directly on the vibration of the sound-producing part or on the path of the sound.

On string instruments a mute is a small piece of wood, metal, or rubber clamped onto the bridge, damping its vibration. On brass instruments a cone- or cup-shaped mute is inserted into the bell; woodwinds occasionally use special inserts. On the piano, the felt strips lifted from the strings by the right pedal are also called dampers, though with the opposite effect: raising them lengthens the sound rather than shortening it.

Musical use

For strings, the markings con sordino (with mute) and senza sordino (without mute) appear in scores and produce a softer, more distant tone often used for quiet, intimate, or ghostly passages. For brass instruments, different mute types such as straight, cup, or plunger mutes fundamentally change the tone color and are an important expressive tool, especially in jazz.

Performance practice

Enough time should be allowed for inserting or removing a mute during a piece, since the change cannot happen instantly on strings or brass. Composers usually notate such passages with sufficient lead time.