What instrument does the leader of an orchestra play?

An orchestra is a group of musicians playing instruments together. They make music. A large orchestra is sometimes called a "symphony orchestra" and a small orchestra is called a "chamber orchestra". A symphony orchestra may have about 100 players, while a chamber orchestra may have 30 or 40 players.

The word derives from the ancient Greek part of a stage where instruments and the chorus combined music and drama to create theater. The first semblance of a modern orchestra came in the early 17th century when the Italian opera composer Claudio Monteverdi formally assigned specific instruments to perform his music.

A modern full-scale symphony orchestra consists of approximately one hundred permanent musicians, most often distributed as follows: 16–18 1st violins, 16 2nd violins, 12 violas, 12 cellos, 8 double basses, 4 flutes (one with piccolo as a specialty), 4 oboes (one with English horn as a specialty), 4 clarinets (one with ...

There are usually one or two harps in an orchestra and they play both melody and harmony. You play the harp sitting down with your legs on either side, with the neck of the harp leaning on your right shoulder.

You might hear the music orchestras play described as orchestral, symphonic, and classical. Let's break it down: Orchestral music is work performed by an orchestra. An orchestra has a traditional sound involving the brass, woodwinds, strings, and percussion.

Wind instruments include flute, oboe, clarinet and bassoons. String instruments include harp, violin, viola, cello, and double bass. Percussion instruments include timpani, snare drum, bass drum, cymbals, triangle, celesta and piano. Brass instruments are made up of French horn, trumpet, trombone and tuba.

Major orchestra salaries range by the orchestra from a little over $100,000 to a little over $150,000. Principals, the ranking member of each orchestra section, can make a great deal more, in some instances more than $400,000. And most major orchestras play for a season lasting only about nine- months a year.

A concert pianist makes $50,000 per year on average. This does not include travel, dining, and other performance related costs. Some of the worlds top concert pianists make between $25,000 – $75,000 per concert.

The modern orchestra developed during the Baroque period. Tchaikovsky wrote 1812 Overture. Johann Strauss I pushed his son to become a composer and musician. The music of the Baroque period is the first to be among the musical pieces that people today are generally familiar with.

Orchestras most often play classical, instrumental music and you can quickly identify them by their characteristic mix of instruments from four main instrument families (more on those later). When orchestras are really large, we call them symphony orchestras.

The Concert orchestra is a preparatory group that works on building a musical foundation through classical pieces that are arranged for younger musicians. The Symphony Orchestra is a more advancedgroup that focuses on performing original classical repertoire at a professional level.

Live music is one of the many essential elements of a Broadway musical. ... We invite you to explore behind the scenes – take a virtual tour and visit our orchestra members, look at the galleries and media pages, and get to know the talented musicians that make music each night on the Great White Way.

An orchestra is “a group of performers on various musical instruments for playing music, as symphonies, operas, popular music, or other compositions.” An orchestra especially includes stringed instruments of the viol class, clarinets and flutes, cornets and trombones, drums, and cymbals.

Of, relating to, or resembling an orchestra. composed for or performed by an orchestra: orchestral works.

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Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO), American symphony orchestra based in Chicago, Ill., renowned for its distinctive tone and its recordings under such conductors as Fritz Reiner and Sir Georg Solti.

The primary responsibilities of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble, and to control the interpretation and pacing of the music. ... Typically, orchestral conductors use a baton more often than choral conductors.

Improve Your Orchestral Playing, Even from the Back of the...Learn to Multitask. Sitting at or near the back of the strings requires an intense concentration that has to be focused in many different directions. ... Follow the Conductor. ... Bowing Tips. ... Follow the Leader. ... Leading from the Back.

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How is orchestrating different than composing? ... If the composer has written a divisi—something where, say, the violins play two different parts—the orchestrator will determine exactly how the music will be divided, whether it's simply between first and second violins or a more unusual arrangement.