The finest hairline strokes are created on the upstrokes and sideways strokes. Lighter pressure produces less flexing of the tines, creating thinner strokes. Thick lines are created on downstrokes by pushing down on the nib, causing the nib tines to splay and allowing more ink to flow through the widened slit onto the writing surface. Thick and thin strokes are achieved by varying the amount of pressure on the nib.

The pointed nib is flexible and comes to a sharp point rather than a broad edge. Many writing styles have developed over the centuries with the broad nib, including the medieval Uncial, Blackletter and Carolingian minuscule scripts (and their variants), the Italic Hand of the Renaissance, and more recently Edward Johnston's Foundational Hand, developed in the early 20th century.

Thick and thin strokes are created by varying the direction of the stroke. The pen is usually held at a constant angle to the horizontal different scripts require different nib angles. The broad nib, also called broad-edge or chisel-edge, is the older of the two nib types. Pen nibs come in a variety of different shapes and sizes for different purposes but can be split into two main types: broad nibs and pointed nibs. Also, they can now be attached to and removed from holders, allowing one to switch between nibs with relative ease. Metal nibs are also easily manufactured to have different properties for different purposes. The metal nib retains a sharp point or edge much longer than the quill, which wears out more quickly and requires much skill to sharpen. It was not until the 1820s, when John Mitchell, Josiah Mason and others set up a factory in Birmingham, England to manufacture steel nibs, that their popularity took off. In the early 1800s, Wise in Britain, and Peregrine Williamson in the United States were the first recorded makers of steel pens as their primary occupation. Metallic nibs were made up through the 18th-century as one-off, craftsman-made luxury items. However, the quality of writing that could be achieved with these pens was inferior to that of reed pens. Metal nibs have their origins as far back as ancient Egypt and were made of metals like copper and bronze. For business purposes, the quill was fairly quickly overtaken however, it remains popular for personal use and for artistic work. The quill was in common use until the early 19th century and the advent of the metal nib. A quill has the advantage of being more durable and more flexible than a reed pen, and it can also retain ink in the hollow shaft of the feather, known as the calamus, allowing more writing time between ink dippings. Quills are fashioned by cutting a nib into the end of a feather obtained from a fairly large bird, such as a goose, traditionally from its left wing.

A recording of the webinars will be available for participants to access for 2 weeks after the event.The quill replaced the reed pen across Europe by the Early Middle Ages and remained the main writing tool of the West for nearly a thousand years until the 17th century. The webinars are 1.5 hours long and will be broadcast live via Zoom and participants will need to sign up via Eventbrite. The CBSO brass section will share their top tips and advice for musicians, and participants will have the opportunity to submit all their essential musical questions. Featuring members of the CBSO brass section, this webinar will utilise orchestral repertoire to demonstrate topics such as practising before the 1st rehearsal, warmups, seating, tuning, voicing and balance, breathing and your role within the section. Michael Seal, Associate Conductor of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO), leads an interactive webinar for musicians of all ages, focusing on ensemble playing. Hosted by Michael Seal, Associate Conductor and featuring mid-sized ensembles from the CBSO, Art of the Ensemble has been created to support and engage students and amateur musicians. Art of the Ensemble is a week-long Webinar series, focusing on skills and attributes required for ensemble playing.

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