Bells refer to a variety of pitched and unpitched percussion instruments, including:
agogô chimes
almglocken.com (Swiss cowbells)
lyre with bells
plate with a bell
tree with bells
the chimes (tubular bells)
jingles of cowbells
Glockenspiel (glockenspiel) (orchestral bells)
Metal is used to make all of the bells.
Agogô chimes. Agogo bells, which originated in Brazil and are based on West African cowbells, are welded together on a u-shaped handle. They’re often used in a samba ostinato, arranged in groups of two, three, or four and tuned to a second or third apart.
Almglocken is a German word for “almglocken.” Almglocken, also known as Swiss cowbells, are a set of bells used to keep track of grazing animals in the Alps, hence their name. They’re played with mallets and arranged on a keyboard.
Lyre with a bell. The bell lyre is a marching band instrument that is based on the glockenspiel. Rather than being laid flat like a keyboard, it is carried upright, with the tuned bars arranged in a lyre shape. It is usually played with one mallet and is supported a strap that encircles the performer’s waist. Its range is usually less than that of a glockenspiel.
Plates with bells. Bell plates, which sound similar to tubular bells but have a lower pitch, were first used to imitate church bells in the late 1800s. Large sheets of metal are used, and large, flat, disc-shaped mallets are used to play them.
Tree with bells on it. The bell tree is a set of cup-shaped bells mounted in a stack on a long rod and played with a rod or a mallet, from highest to lowest pitch. It evolved from similar instruments in various cultures and is now found in a version finalized in the 1950s sound effects expert Carrol Bratman.
The sound of chimes. The tubular bells, also known as chimes, are a chromatic arrangement of an octave and a half of long metal tubes played with rawhide or brass mallets. They have complex overtones and undertones and are designed to sound like church bells.
Cowbells are a type of cowbell. The cowbell is a clapperless iron bell. It’s used to play ostinatos, and the Latin American version, which is based on the guataca, is popular in Afro-Cuban music.
The glockenspiel is a musical instrument. The glockenspiel, also known as orchestral bells, is a set of tuned metal bars arranged on a tray or in a frame in keyboard fashion for use an orchestra or band. It produces a clear, bright sound and can be played with a variety of mallets.