Introduction

People have been putting instruments together in various combinations

for as long as there have been instruments, thousands and thousands of
years. But it wasn't until about the last 400 years that musicians started
forming into combinations that turned into the modern orchestra.
In the old days, when musicians got together to play, they used whatever
instruments were around. If there were three lute players, a harp, and two
flutes, then that's what they used. By the 1500s, the time known as the
Renaissance, the word "consort" was used to mean a group of
instrumentalists, and sometimes singers too, making music together or "in
concert".

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What is an orchestra?
An orchestra is a group of instrumentalists, especially one combining
string, woodwind, brass, and percussion sections and playing classical
music.
The word "orchestra" was used to describe the place where musicians and
dancers performed in ancient Greece. The orchestra, or symphony
orchestra, is generally defined as an ensemble mainly composing of
bowed stringed instruments, percussion, wind and brass instruments.
Often, the orchestra is composed of 100 musicians and may be
accompanied by a chorus or be purely instrumental. In today's setting, the
word "orchestra" not only pertains to a group of musicians but also to the
main floor of a theatre.

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Types of Orchestras: The Symphony

A symphony orchestra consists of a group of 50 to 100 musicians. It
contains string, brass, woodwind and percussion instruments. The average
size of a full orchestra is about 80 players. A modern orchestra may
consist of nine woodwind instruments, 10 brass instruments, 12
percussion and 50 to 60 string instruments. It is not uncommon for a city
to have more than one orchestra-New York has a symphony and
philharmonic, which have the same structure but different names to tell
them apart. Symphonies play various types of music from classical to film
scores and jazz. They are always led by a conductor.

Arrangement: The Symphony Orchestra

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The Chamber Orchestra

A chamber orchestra is a smaller version of a symphony and has less than
50 musicians. The name means the orchestra is small enough to fit in the
chamber room of a private home or public hall. It uses one musician per
musical part, unlike the two to three musicians playing the same part in a
symphony. An exception is the amount of string instruments, which are
generally the same in chamber and symphony orchestras. The type of
music played is identical to a symphony orchestra. They are also led by a
conductor.
Arrangement: The Chamber Orchestra

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Instruments: The Symphony Orchestra

Strings (cellos, double bass, violas, first and second violins)

brass (trumpets, horns)

woodwinds (bassoons, clarinets, oboes, flutes)

percussion (timpani)

During the 19th century, more instruments were added to the orchestra
including the trombone and the tuba. Some composers created music
pieces that needed orchestras that were very large in size. However in the
late 20th century, composers opted for smaller sized orchestras such
as chamber orchestras.

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Instruments: The Chamber Orchestra

Strings

Two violins, viola and cello make up the standard string quartet used
in chamber music.

Woodwinds

flute

oboe

clarinet

bassoon

French horn

Brass

Trumpets

French horn

Trombone

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tuba

Other Instruments
The music literature for chamber performers also includes mixed groups, a
term used to describe any non-standard instrumental combination. The
music can use any standard orchestral instruments, or a non-orchestral
instrument such as the guitar. Piano trios include a combination of piano,
violin and cello. Percussion instruments, including marimba and
vibraphone, date to more modern chamber music pieces, primarily from
composers working in the later 20th Century. The use of percussion in
chamber compositions is rare.

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Violin

Viola

String

Cello

Double bass

Flute
Oboe

Woodwind

Clarinet

Bassoon

Trumpet

French horn

Brass

Trombone

Tuba

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Who is a Conductor?
A conductor is someone who leads and guides an orchestra or a group of
singers in order to perform a piece to the best of their abilities.
Conductors work in theatre or stage plays, film or TV scores, lead
orchestras and choirs that are either amateurs or pros.
What are the conductors roles?
A conductor directs the musicians with a stick, called the baton. But he
does important things before the performance:

He chooses the music that is to be played at a concert

and decides how it should be played- loud or soft, fast or slow.
He calls the musicians to rehearsals where he often lets sections
or individual musicians play their parts over and over again until the
sound is perfect.
The conductor makes sure that the music piece is interpreted
properly by acting as the guide to the musicians or singers.
He chooses and studies the music score, may make certain
adjustments to it and relay his ideas to the performers so that when
the music is played, there is unity and harmony.
He schedules rehearsals, plans the orchestra's repertoire and
attends to other matters concerning the group he leads.

A Famous Conductor: Arturo Toscanini

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Arturo Toscanini was one of the world's most admired conductors during the
first half of the 20th century. He worked at La Scala and later led the NBC
Symphony.
QUOTES
When the baton trembles in my hand, I shall conduct no more.
Arturo Toscanini
Synopsis
Born in Italy on March 25, 1867, Arturo Toscanini first established himself
as a talented conductor when he was just 19. In a career that spanned
decades, Toscanini worked with leading opera houses and symphonies
across the globe, including La Scala, the Metropolitan Opera, the New York
Philharmonic and the NBC Symphony Orchestra. At the age of 89,
Toscanini died in New York on January 16, 1957.

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Famous Composers
Ludwig van Beethoven -Pianist, Songwriter (c. 17701827)

Composer Ludwig van Beethoven was baptized on December 17, 1770, in

Bonn, Germany. He was an innovator, widening the scope of sonata,
symphony, concerto and quartet, and combining vocals and instruments
in a new way. His personal life was marked by a struggle against deafness,
and some of his most important works were composed during the last 10
years of his life, when he was quite unable to hear.
Beethovens Popular Compositions:
1. Fur Elise
2. Ode to Joy
3. Moonlight Sonata

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Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Pianist, Songwriter (17561791)

Born on January 27, 1756, in Salzburg, Austria, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

was a musician capable of playing multiple instruments who started
playing in public at the age of 6. Over the years, Mozart aligned himself
with a variety of European venues and patrons, composing hundreds of
works that included sonatas, symphonies, masses, concertos and operas,
marked by vivid emotion and sophisticated textures.
Mozarts Popular Compositions:
1. Piano Concerto No.21
2. Piano Sonata in C
3. Symphony No. 40

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Johann Sebastian Bach -Songwriter (16851750)

Born on March 21, 1685, in Eisenach, Thuringia, Germany, Johann

Sebastian Bach had a prestigious musical lineage and took on various
organist positions during the early 18th century, creating famous
compositions like "Toccata and Fugue in D minor." Some of his best-known
compositions are the "Mass in B Minor," the "Brandenburg Concertos" and
"The Well-Tempered Clavier." Bach died in Leipzig, Germany, on July 28,
1750. Today, he is considered one of the greatest Western composers of
all time.
Bachs Popular Compositions:
1. The Art of Fugue (keyboard)
2. Toccata and Fugue in D Minor (organ)
3. The Brandenburg Concertos

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