103-739: The Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra is a British professional symphony orchestra based in Oxford and is the Orchestra in Residence at the University of Oxford . It was founded in 1998 by Marios Papadopoulos as the Oxford Philomusica and was renamed the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra in 2015. Symphony orchestra An orchestra ( / ˈ ɔːr k ɪ s t r ə / ; OR -ki-strə )
206-411: A symphony orchestra or philharmonic orchestra (from Greek phil- , "loving", and "harmony"). The number of musicians employed in a given performance may vary from seventy to over one hundred, depending on the work being played and the venue size. A chamber orchestra (sometimes a concert orchestra ) is a smaller ensemble of not more than about fifty musicians. Orchestras that specialize in
309-519: A musical score , which contains all the instrument parts. The conductor uses the score to study the symphony before rehearsals and decide on their interpretation (e.g., tempos, articulation, phrasing, etc.), and to follow the music during rehearsals and concerts, while leading the ensemble. Orchestral musicians play from parts containing just the notated music for their instrument. A small number of symphonies also contain vocal parts (e.g., Beethoven 's Ninth Symphony ). Orchestras also perform overtures ,
412-480: A comedy. Aristotle claimed that Aeschylus added the second actor ( deuteragonist ), and that Sophocles introduced the third ( tritagonist ). Apparently, the Greek playwrights never used more than three actors based on what is known about Greek theatre. Tragedy and comedy were viewed as completely separate genres, and no plays ever merged aspects of the two. Satyr plays dealt with the mythological subject matter of
515-413: A conductor, although early orchestras did not have one, giving this role to the concertmaster or the harpsichordist playing the continuo . Some modern orchestras also do without conductors , particularly smaller orchestras and those specializing in historically accurate (so-called "period") performances of baroque and earlier music. The most frequently performed repertoire for a symphony orchestra
618-514: A consensus that faking may be acceptable when a part is not written well for the instrument, but faking "just because you haven't practised" the music is not acceptable. With the advent of the early music movement, smaller orchestras where players worked on execution of works in styles derived from the study of older treatises on playing became common. These include the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment ,
721-633: A high school, or a university, and community orchestras; typically they are made up of amateur musicians from a particular city or region. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ὀρχήστρα ( orchestra ), the name for the area in front of a stage in ancient Greek theatre reserved for the Greek chorus . In the Baroque era, the size and composition of an orchestra were not standardised. There were large differences in size, instrumentation and playing styles—and therefore in orchestral soundscapes and palettes — between
824-580: A hill, producing a natural viewing area known as the theatron (literally "seeing place"). In cities without suitable hills, banks of earth were piled up. At the foot of the hill was a flattened, generally circular performance space with an average diameter of 78 feet (24 m), known as the orchestra (literally "dancing place"), where a chorus of typically 12 to 15 people performed plays in verse accompanied by music. There were often tall, arched entrances called parodoi or eisodoi , through which actors and chorus members entered and exited
927-553: A hundred, but the actual number of musicians employed in a particular performance may vary according to the work being played and the size of the venue. A chamber orchestra is usually a smaller ensemble; a major chamber orchestra might employ as many as fifty musicians, but some are much smaller. Concert orchestra is an alternative term, as in the BBC Concert Orchestra and the RTÉ Concert Orchestra . Apart from
1030-402: A link with the practices of the ancient Dionysian cults . It is impossible, however, to know with certainty how these fertility rituals became the basis for tragedy and comedy . The Ancient Greeks valued the power of the spoken word, and it was their main method of communication and storytelling. Bahn and Bahn write, "To Greeks, the spoken word was a living thing and infinitely preferable to
1133-415: A live performance, could be heard by critics. As recording technologies improved over the 20th and 21st centuries, eventually small errors in a recording could be "fixed" by audio editing or overdubbing . Some older conductors and composers could remember a time when simply "getting through" the music as well as possible was the standard. Combined with the wider audience made possible by recording, this led to
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#17328447033391236-601: A longer life in English as a common term for performer—i.e., a "thespian." The dramatic performances were important to the Athenians – this is made clear by the creation of a tragedy competition and festival in the City Dionysia (or Great Dionysia). This was organized possibly to foster loyalty among the tribes of Attica (recently created by Cleisthenes ). The festival was created roughly around 508 BC. While no drama texts exist from
1339-846: A modified member of the horn family, appears in Richard Wagner 's cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen and several other works by Strauss, Igor Stravinsky (as featured in The Rite of Spring ), Béla Bartók , and others; it also has a notably prominent role in Anton Bruckner 's Symphony No. 7 in E ;Major . Cornets appear in Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky 's ballet Swan Lake , Claude Debussy 's La Mer , and several orchestral works by Hector Berlioz . Unless these instruments are played by members "doubling" on another instrument (for example,
1442-624: A permanent member who is sick. A professional musician who is hired to perform for a single concert is sometimes called a "sub". Some contract musicians may be hired to replace permanent members for the period that the permanent member is on parental leave or disability leave. Historically, major professional orchestras have been mostly or entirely composed of men. The first women members hired in professional orchestras have been harpists . The Vienna Philharmonic , for example, did not accept women to permanent membership until 1997, far later than comparable orchestras (the other orchestras ranked among
1545-549: A play, such as the Furies in Aeschylus ' Eumenides and Pentheus and Cadmus in Euripides ' The Bacchae . Worn by the chorus, the masks created a sense of unity and uniformity, while representing a multi-voiced persona or single organism and simultaneously encouraged interdependency and a heightened sensitivity between each individual of the group. Only 2 to 3 actors were allowed on
1648-405: A range of different employment arrangements. The most sought-after positions are permanent, tenured positions in the orchestra. Orchestras also hire musicians on contracts, ranging in length from a single concert to a full season or more. Contract performers may be hired for individual concerts when the orchestra is doing an exceptionally large late-Romantic era orchestral work, or to substitute for
1751-412: A renewed focus on particular star conductors and on a high standard of orchestral execution. The typical symphony orchestra consists of four groups of related musical instruments called the woodwinds , brass , percussion , and strings . Other instruments such as the piano, accordion , and celesta may sometimes be grouped into a fifth section such as a keyboard section or may stand alone, as may
1854-437: A term originally applied to the instrumental introduction to an opera. During the early Romantic era, composers such as Beethoven and Mendelssohn began to use the term to refer to independent, self-existing instrumental, programmatic works that presaged genres such as the symphonic poem , a form devised by Franz Liszt in several works that began as dramatic overtures. These were "at first undoubtedly intended to be played at
1957-513: A thousand drachmas for bringing to mind a calamity that affected them so personally and forbade the performance of that play forever." He is also thought to be the first to use female characters (though not female performers). Until the Hellenistic period , all tragedies were unique pieces written in honour of Dionysus and played only once; what is primarily extant today are the pieces that were still remembered well enough to have been repeated when
2060-458: A trend toward donors finding other social causes more compelling. While government funding is less central to American than European orchestras, cuts in such funding are still significant for American ensembles. Finally, the drastic drop in revenues from recording, related to changes in the recording industry itself, began a period of change that has yet to reach its conclusion. U.S. orchestras that have gone into Chapter 11 bankruptcy include
2163-461: A trombone player changing to euphonium or a bassoon player switching to contrabassoon for a certain passage), orchestras typically hire freelance musicians to augment their regular ensemble. The 20th century orchestra was far more flexible than its predecessors. In Beethoven's and Felix Mendelssohn 's time, the orchestra was composed of a fairly standard core of instruments, which was very rarely modified by composers. As time progressed, and as
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#17328447033392266-490: A variety of amateur orchestras: Orchestras play a wide range of repertoire ranging from 17th-century dance suites , 18th century divertimentos to 20th-century film scores and 21st-century symphonies. Orchestras have become synonymous with the symphony , an extended musical composition in Western classical music that typically contains multiple movements which provide contrasting keys and tempos. Symphonies are notated in
2369-400: Is Western classical music or opera. However, orchestras are used sometimes in popular music (e.g., to accompany a rock or pop band in a concert), extensively in film music , and increasingly often in video game music . Orchestras are also used in the symphonic metal genre. The term "orchestra" can also be applied to a jazz ensemble, for example in the performance of big-band music. In
2472-520: Is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: Other instruments such as the piano , harpsichord , pipe organ , and celesta may sometimes appear in a fifth keyboard section or may stand alone as soloist instruments, as may the concert harp and, for performances of some modern compositions, electronic instruments , and guitars . A full-size Western orchestra may sometimes be called
2575-417: Is called for in a string section, the section leader invariably plays that part. The section leader (or principal) of a string section is also responsible for determining the bowings, often based on the bowings set out by the concertmaster. In some cases, the principal of a string section may use a slightly different bowing than the concertmaster, to accommodate the requirements of playing their instrument (e.g.,
2678-417: Is disputed, and Thespis is sometimes listed as late as 16th in the chronological order of Greek tragedians; the statesman Solon , for example, is credited with creating poems in which characters speak with their own voice, and spoken performances of Homer 's epics by rhapsodes were popular in festivals prior to 534 BC. Thus, Thespis's true contribution to drama is unclear at best, but his name has been given
2781-511: Is normally regarded as the Golden Age of Greek drama. The center-piece of the annual Dionysia , which took place once in winter and once in spring, was a competition between three tragic playwrights at the Theatre of Dionysus . Each submitted three tragedies, plus a satyr play (a comic, burlesque version of a mythological subject). Beginning in a first competition in 486 BC each playwright submitted
2884-531: Is the Pronomos Vase where actors are painted at a show's after party. Costuming would give off a sense of character, as in gender, age, social status, and class. For example, characters of higher class would be dressed in nicer clothing, although everyone was dressed fairly nicely. Contrary to popular belief, they did not dress in only rags and sandals, as they wanted to impress. Some examples of Greek theatre costuming include long robes called chiton that reached
2987-588: The "Eroica" Symphony arrives to provide not only some harmonic flexibility but also the effect of "choral" brass in the Trio movement. Piccolo , contrabassoon , and trombones add to the triumphal finale of his Symphony No. 5 . A piccolo and a pair of trombones help deliver the effect of storm and sunshine in the Sixth , also known as the Pastoral Symphony . The Ninth asks for a second pair of horns, for reasons similar to
3090-451: The Baroque music of, for example, Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frideric Handel , or Classical repertoire, such as that of Haydn and Mozart , tend to be smaller than orchestras performing a Romantic music repertoire such as the symphonies of Ludwig van Beethoven and Johannes Brahms . The typical orchestra grew in size throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, reaching a peak with
3193-623: The London Classical Players under the direction of Sir Roger Norrington and the Academy of Ancient Music under Christopher Hogwood , among others. In the United States, the late 20th century saw a crisis of funding and support for orchestras. The size and cost of a symphony orchestra, compared to the size of the base of supporters, became an issue that struck at the core of the institution. Few orchestras could fill auditoriums, and
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3296-1035: The Philadelphia Orchestra (April 2011), and the Louisville Orchestra (December 2010); orchestras that have gone into Chapter 7 bankruptcy and have ceased operations include the Northwest Chamber Orchestra in 2006, the Honolulu Orchestra in March ;2011, the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra in April 2011, and the Syracuse Symphony in June ;2011. The Festival of Orchestras in Orlando, Florida, ceased operations at
3399-477: The bassline ), played an important role; the second is a typical classical period orchestra (e.g., early Beethoven along with Mozart and Haydn ), which used a smaller group of performers than a Romantic music orchestra and a fairly standardized instrumentation; the third is typical of an early/mid-Romantic era (e.g., Schubert , Berlioz , Schumann , Brahms ); the fourth is a late-Romantic/early 20th-century orchestra (e.g., Wagner , Mahler , Stravinsky ), to
3502-440: The concert harp and electric and electronic instruments. The orchestra, depending on the size, contains almost all of the standard instruments in each group. In the history of the orchestra, its instrumentation has been expanded over time, often agreed to have been standardized by the classical period and Ludwig van Beethoven 's influence on the classical model. In the 20th and 21st century, new repertory demands expanded
3605-441: The theatre of ancient Greece , from which it borrows technical terminology, classification into genres, and many of its themes , stock characters , and plot elements. The word τραγῳδία , tragodia , from which the word " tragedy " is derived, is a compound of two Greek words: τράγος , tragos or "goat" and ᾠδή , ode meaning "song", from ἀείδειν , aeidein , 'to sing'. This etymology indicates
3708-426: The "Eroica" (four horns has since become standard); Beethoven's use of piccolo, contrabassoon, trombones, and untuned percussion—plus chorus and vocal soloists—in his finale, are his earliest suggestion that the timbral boundaries of the symphony might be expanded. For several decades after his death, symphonic instrumentation was faithful to Beethoven's well-established model, with few exceptions. The invention of
3811-464: The "great unmentionable [topics] of orchestral playing" is " faking ", the process by which an orchestral musician gives the false "... impression of playing every note as written", typically for a very challenging passage that is very high or very fast, while not actually playing the notes that are in the printed music part. An article in The Strad states that all orchestral musicians, even those in
3914-466: The 1960s. Greek mask-maker Thanos Vovolis suggests that the mask serves as a resonator for the head, thus enhancing vocal acoustics and altering its quality. This leads to increased energy and presence, allowing for the more complete metamorphosis of the actor into his character. In a large open-air theatre, like the Theatre of Dionysus in Athens , the classical masks were able to create a sense of dread in
4017-606: The 19th century is generally attributed to the forces called for by Beethoven after Haydn and Mozart. Beethoven's instrumentation almost always included paired flutes , oboes, clarinets, bassoons, horns and trumpets. The exceptions are his Symphony No. 4 , Violin Concerto , and Piano Concerto No. 4 , which each specify a single flute. Beethoven carefully calculated the expansion of this particular timbral "palette" in Symphonies 3, 5, 6, and 9 for an innovative effect. The third horn in
4120-406: The 2000s, all tenured members of a professional orchestra normally audition for positions in the ensemble. Performers typically play one or more solo pieces of the auditionee's choice, such as a movement of a concerto, a solo Bach movement, and a variety of excerpts from the orchestral literature that are advertised in the audition poster (so the auditionees can prepare). The excerpts are typically
4223-675: The Classical era, as composers increasingly sought out financial support from the general public, orchestra concerts were increasingly held in public concert halls , where music lovers could buy tickets to hear the orchestra. Aristocratic patronage of orchestras continued during the Classical era, but this went on alongside public concerts. In the 20th and 21st century, orchestras found a new patron: governments. Many orchestras in North America and Europe receive part of their funding from national, regional level governments (e.g., state governments in
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4326-517: The Romantic period saw changes in accepted modification with composers such as Berlioz and Mahler; some composers used multiple harps and sound effect such as the wind machine . During the 20th century, the modern orchestra was generally standardized with the modern instrumentation listed below. Nevertheless, by the mid- to late 20th century, with the development of contemporary classical music , instrumentation could practically be hand-picked by
4429-472: The U.S.) or city governments. These government subsidies make up part of orchestra revenue, along with ticket sales, charitable donations (if the orchestra is registered as a charity) and other fundraising activities. With the invention of successive technologies, including sound recording , radio broadcasting , television broadcasting and Internet-based streaming and downloading of concert videos, orchestras have been able to find new revenue sources. One of
4532-763: The VPO now uses completely screened blind auditions . In 2013, an article in Mother Jones stated that while "[m]any prestigious orchestras have significant female membership — women outnumber men in the New York Philharmonic 's violin section — and several renowned ensembles, including the National Symphony Orchestra , the Detroit Symphony , and the Minnesota Symphony, are led by women violinists",
4635-474: The actors' voices could be heard throughout the theatre, including the very top row of seats. The Greek's understanding of acoustics compares very favorably with the current state of the art . There were several scenic elements commonly used in Greek theatre: The Ancient Greek term for a mask is prosopon (lit., "face"), and was a significant element in the worship of Dionysus at Athens likely used in ceremonial rites and celebrations. Many masks worshipped
4738-400: The altar of Dionysus after performances. Nevertheless, the mask is known to have been used since the time of Aeschylus and considered to be one of the iconic conventions of classical Greek theatre. Masks were also made for members of the chorus, who play some part in the action and provide a commentary on the events in which they are caught up. Although there are twelve or fifteen members of
4841-542: The audience creating large scale panic, especially since they had intensely exaggerated facial features and expressions. They enabled an actor to appear and reappear in several different roles, thus preventing the audience from identifying the actor to one specific character. Their variations help the audience to distinguish sex, age, and social status, in addition to revealing a change in a particular character's appearance, e.g., Oedipus , after blinding himself. Unique masks were also created for specific characters and events in
4944-433: The bottom of the theatron where the chorus and actors performed; the word means "dancing space", as the chorus also danced in early periods. Originally unraised, Greek theatre would later incorporate a raised stage for easier viewing. This practice would become common after the advent of "New Comedy," which incorporated dramatic portrayal of individual characters. The coryphaeus was the head chorus member, who could enter
5047-410: The case of the first violins, an assistant concertmaster, who often plays a tutti part in addition to replacing the principal in their absence. A section string player plays in unison with the rest of the section, except in the case of divided ( divisi ) parts, where upper and lower parts in the music are often assigned to "outside" (nearer the audience) and "inside" seated players. Where a solo part
5150-416: The classical era, the orchestra became more standardized with a small to medium-sized string section and a core wind section consisting of pairs of oboes, flutes, bassoons and horns, sometimes supplemented by percussion and pairs of clarinets and trumpets. The so-called "standard complement" of doubled winds and brass in the orchestra pioneered in the late 18th century and consolidated during the first half of
5253-498: The common complement of a 2010-era modern orchestra (e.g., Adams , Barber , Aaron Copland , Glass , Penderecki ). Among the instrument groups and within each group of instruments, there is a generally accepted hierarchy. Every instrumental group (or section) has a principal who is generally responsible for leading the group and playing orchestral solos. The violins are divided into two groups, first violin and second violin, with
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#17328447033395356-406: The composer (e.g., to add electric instruments such as electric guitar, electronic instruments such as synthesizers, ondes martenot , or trautonium , as well as other non-Western instruments, or other instruments not traditionally used in orchestras including the: bandoneon , free bass accordion , harmonica , jews harp , mandola and water percussion. With this history in mind,
5459-551: The concertmaster, or by a chord-playing musician performing the basso continuo parts on a harpsichord or pipe organ , a tradition that some 20th-century and 21st-century early music ensembles continue. Orchestras play a wide range of repertoire, including symphonies, opera and ballet overtures , concertos for solo instruments, and pit ensembles for operas, ballets, and some types of musical theatre (e.g., Gilbert and Sullivan operettas ). Amateur orchestras include youth orchestras made up of students from an elementary school,
5562-413: The conductor and the panel to compare the best candidates. Performers may be asked to sight read orchestral music. The final stage of the audition process in some orchestras is a test week , in which the performer plays with the orchestra for a week or two, which allows the conductor and principal players to see if the individual can function well in an actual rehearsal and performance setting. There are
5665-662: The conductor of the theatre orchestra, as he elaborated in his influential work On Conducting . This brought about a revolution in orchestral composition and set the style for orchestral performance for the next eighty years. Wagner's theories re-examined the importance of tempo , dynamics , bowing of string instruments and the role of principals in the orchestra. At the beginning of the 20th century, symphony orchestras were larger, better funded, and better trained than previously; consequently, composers could compose larger and more ambitious works. The works of Gustav Mahler were particularly innovative; in his later symphonies, such as
5768-443: The core orchestral complement, various other instruments are called for occasionally. These include the flugelhorn and cornet . Saxophones and classical guitars, for example, appear in some 19th- through 21st-century scores. While appearing only as featured solo instruments in some works, for example Maurice Ravel 's orchestration of Modest Mussorgsky 's Pictures at an Exhibition and Sergei Rachmaninoff 's Symphonic Dances ,
5871-527: The dead symbols of a written language." Socrates himself believed that once something has been written down, it lost its ability for change and growth. For these reasons, among many others, oral storytelling flourished in Greece. Greek tragedy , as it is presently known, was created in Athens around 532 BC, when Thespis was the earliest recorded actor. Being a winner of the first theatrical contest held in Athens, he
5974-436: The double bass, brass, and percussion sections of major orchestras "... are still predominantly male." A 2014 BBC article stated that the "... introduction of 'blind' auditions, where a prospective instrumentalist performs behind a screen so that the judging panel can exercise no gender or racial prejudice, has seen the gender balance of traditionally male-dominated symphony orchestras gradually shift." There are also
6077-400: The double-bass section). Principals of a string section will also lead entrances for their section, typically by lifting the bow before the entrance, to ensure the section plays together. Tutti wind and brass players generally play a unique but non-solo part. Section percussionists play parts assigned to them by the principal percussionist. In modern times, the musicians are usually directed by
6180-428: The end of March 2011. One source of financial difficulties that received notice and criticism was high salaries for music directors of US orchestras, which led several high-profile conductors to take pay cuts in recent years. Music administrators such as Michael Tilson Thomas and Esa-Pekka Salonen argued that new music, new means of presenting it, and a renewed relationship with the community could revitalize
6283-426: The ensemble. The conductor also prepares the orchestra by leading rehearsals before the public concert, in which the conductor provides instructions to the musicians on their interpretation of the music being performed. The leader of the first violin section – commonly called the concertmaster – also plays an important role in leading the musicians. In the Baroque music era (1600–1750), orchestras were often led by
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#17328447033396386-434: The first systematic treatise on using instrumental sound as an expressive element of music. The next major expansion of symphonic practice came from Richard Wagner 's Bayreuth orchestra, founded to accompany his musical dramas. Wagner's works for the stage were scored with unprecedented scope and complexity: indeed, his score to Das Rheingold calls for six harps . Thus, Wagner envisioned an ever-more-demanding role for
6489-454: The floor for actors playing gods, heroes, and old men. Actors playing goddesses and women characters that held a lot of power wore purple and gold. Actors playing queens and princesses wore long cloaks that dragged on the ground and were decorated with gold stars and other jewels, and warriors were dressed in a variety of armor and wore helmets adorned with plumes. Costumes were supposed to be colourful and obvious to be easily seen by every seat in
6592-577: The full range of orchestral sounds and timbres during the performance of orthodox Western classical music. The terms symphony orchestra and philharmonic orchestra may be used to distinguish different ensembles from the same locality, such as the London Symphony Orchestra and the London Philharmonic Orchestra . A symphony or philharmonic orchestra will usually have over eighty musicians on its roster, in some cases over
6695-543: The head of a programme". In the 1850s the concert overture began to be supplanted by the symphonic poem. Orchestras also play with instrumental soloists in concertos. During concertos, the orchestra plays an accompaniment role to the soloist (e.g., a solo violinist or pianist) and, at times, introduces musical themes or interludes while the soloist is not playing. Orchestras also play during operas, ballets, some musical theatre works and some choral works (both sacred works such as Masses and secular works). In operas and ballets,
6798-550: The higher power, the gods, making masks also very important for religion. Most of the evidence comes from only a few vase paintings of the 5th century BC, such as one showing a mask of the god suspended from a tree with decorated robe hanging below it and dancing and the Pronomos vase, which depicts actors preparing for a satyr play . No physical evidence remains available to us, as the masks were made of organic materials and not considered permanent objects, ultimately being dedicated at
6901-553: The instrumentation of the orchestra, resulting in a flexible use of the classical-model instruments and newly developed electric and electronic instruments in various combinations. In the mid 20th century, several attempts were made in Germany and the United States to confine the instrumentation of the symphonic orchestra exclusively to groups of one instrument. In this configuration, the symphonic orchestra consisted entirely of free-reed chromatic accordions which were modified to recreate
7004-411: The large orchestras of as many as 120 players called for in the works of Richard Wagner and later Gustav Mahler . Orchestras are usually led by a conductor who directs the performance with movements of the hands and arms, often made easier for the musicians to see by using a short wooden rod known as a conductor's baton . The conductor unifies the orchestra, sets the tempo , and shapes the sound of
7107-526: The mammoth Symphony No. 8 , Mahler pushes the furthest boundaries of orchestral size, employing large forces. By the late Romantic era, orchestras could support the most enormous forms of symphonic expression, with huge string and brass sections and an expanded range of percussion instruments. With the recording era beginning, the standards of performance were pushed to a new level, because a recorded symphony could be listened to closely and even minor errors in intonation or ensemble, which might not be noticeable in
7210-411: The masked actor from the theatrical character. The mask-makers were called skeuopoios or "maker of the props", thus suggesting that their role encompassed multiple duties and tasks. The masks were most likely made out of light weight, organic materials like stiffened linen, leather, wood, or cork, with the wig consisting of human or animal hair. Due to the visual restrictions imposed by these masks, it
7313-445: The most technically challenging parts and solos from the orchestral literature. Orchestral auditions are typically held in front of a panel that includes the conductor, the concertmaster , the principal player of the section for which the auditionee is applying, and possibly other principal players. The most promising candidates from the first round of auditions are invited to return for a second or third round of auditions, which allows
7416-447: The mouth and an integrated wig. These paintings never show actual masks on the actors in performance. They are most often shown being handled by the actors before or after a performance. This demonstrates the way in which the mask was to 'melt' into the face and allow the actor to vanish into the role. Effectively, the mask transformed the actor as much as memorization of the text. Therefore, performance in ancient Greece did not distinguish
7519-436: The orchestra accompanies the singers and dancers, respectively, and plays overtures and interludes where the melodies played by the orchestra take centre stage. In the Baroque era, orchestras performed in a range of venues, including at the fine houses of aristocrats, in opera halls and in churches. Some wealthy aristocrats had an orchestra in residence at their estate, to entertain them and their guests with performances. During
7622-443: The orchestra and also served as an area where actors could change their costumes. After 425 BC a stone scene wall, called a paraskenia , became a common supplement to skené . The paraskenia was a long wall with projecting sides, which may have had doorways for entrances and exits. Just behind the paraskenia was the proskenion ("in front of the scene"), which is similar to the modern day proscenium . The upper story
7725-509: The orchestra can be analysed in five eras: the Baroque era , the Classical era , early/mid- Romantic music era, late-Romantic era and combined Modern/Postmodern eras . The first is a Baroque orchestra (i.e., J.S. Bach , Handel , Vivaldi ), which generally had a smaller number of performers, and in which one or more chord-playing instruments, the basso continuo group (e.g., harpsichord or pipe organ and assorted bass instruments to perform
7828-464: The orchestra gathered [on 28 February 1997] in an extraordinary meeting on the eve of their departure and agreed to admit a woman, Anna Lelkes, as harpist." As of 2013, the orchestra has six female members; one of them, violinist Albena Danailova, became one of the orchestra's concertmasters in 2008, the first woman to hold that position in that orchestra. In 2012, women made up 6% of the orchestra's membership. VPO president Clemens Hellsberg said
7931-644: The orchestra's press secretary wrote that "compensating for the expected leaves of absence" of maternity leave would be a problem. In 1997, the Vienna Philharmonic was "facing protests during a [US] tour" by the National Organization for Women and the International Alliance for Women in Music . Finally, "after being held up to increasing ridicule even in socially conservative Austria, members of
8034-423: The orchestra. In some theatres, behind the orchestra, was a backdrop or scenic wall known as the skené . The term theatre eventually came to mean the whole area of theatron , orchestra , and skené . The theatron was the seating area, built into a hill to create a natural viewing space. The first seats in Greek theatres (other than just sitting on the ground) were wooden, but around 499 BC,
8137-735: The other actors. The actors with comedic roles only wore a thin-soled shoe called a soccus or sock. For this reason, dramatic art is sometimes called " sock and buskin ." Male actors playing female roles would wear a wooden structure on their chests ( posterneda ) to imitate the look of breasts and another structure on their stomachs ( progastreda ) to make them appear softer and more lady like. They would also wear white body stockings under their costumes to make their skin appear fairer. Most costuming detail comes from pottery paintings from that time as costumes and masks were fabricated out of disposable material, so there are little to no remains of any costume from that time. The biggest source of information
8240-446: The piston and rotary valve by Heinrich Stölzel and Friedrich Blühmel , both Silesians , in 1815, was the first in a series of innovations which impacted the orchestra, including the development of modern keywork for the flute by Theobald Boehm and the innovations of Adolphe Sax in the woodwinds, notably the invention of the saxophone. These advances would lead Hector Berlioz to write a landmark book on instrumentation , which were
8343-442: The practice of inlaying stone blocks into the side of the hill to create permanent, stable seating became more common. They were called the prohedria and reserved for priests and a few of the most respected citizens. The diazoma separated the upper and lower seating areas. After 465 BC, playwrights began using a backdrop or scenic wall, called the skené (from which the word scene derives), that hung or stood behind
8446-419: The pre-concert tuning and handles musical aspects of orchestra management, such as determining the bowings for the violins or the entire string section. The concertmaster usually sits to the conductor's left, closest to the audience. There is also a principal second violin, a principal viola, a principal cello, and a principal bass. The principal trombone is considered the leader of the low brass section, while
8549-528: The principal trumpet is generally considered the leader of the entire brass section. While the oboe often provides the tuning note for the orchestra (due to a 300-year-old convention), there is generally no designated principal of the woodwind section (though in woodwind ensembles, the flute is often the presumptive leader). Instead, each principal confers with the others as equals in the case of musical differences of opinion. Most sections also have an assistant principal (or co-principal or associate principal), or in
8652-526: The repetition of old tragedies became fashionable (the accidents of survival, as well as the subjective tastes of the Hellenistic librarians later in Greek history, also played a role in what survived from this period). After the Achaemenid destruction of Athens in 480 BC, the town and acropolis were rebuilt, and theatre became formalized and an even greater part of Athenian culture and civic pride. This century
8755-587: The saxophone is included in other works, such as Ravel's Boléro , Sergei Prokofiev 's Romeo and Juliet Suites 1 and 2 , Vaughan Williams ' Symphonies No. 6 and No. 9 , and William Walton 's Belshazzar's Feast , and many other works as a member of the orchestral ensemble. The euphonium is featured in a few late Romantic and 20th century works , usually playing parts marked "tenor tuba", including Gustav Holst 's The Planets , and Richard Strauss 's Ein Heldenleben . The Wagner tuba ,
8858-413: The second violins playing in lower registers than the first violins, playing an accompaniment part, or harmonizing the melody played by the first violins. The principal first violin is called the concertmaster (or orchestra "leader" in the U.K.) and is not only considered the leader of the string section, but the second-in-command of the entire orchestra, behind only the conductor. The concertmaster leads
8961-521: The sixth century BC, the names of three competitors besides Thespis are known: Choerilus, Pratinas, and Phrynichus . Each is credited with different innovations in the field. Some information is known about Phrynichus. He won his first competition between 511 BC and 508 BC. He produced tragedies on themes and subjects later exploited in the Golden Age such as the Danaids , Phoenician Women and Alcestis . He
9064-435: The stage at one time, and masks permitted quick transitions from one character to another. There were only male actors, but masks allowed them to play female characters. The modern method to interpret a role by switching between a few simple characters goes back to changing masks in the theatre of ancient Greece. The actors in these plays that had tragic roles wore boots called cothurnus ( buskin ), that elevated them above
9167-439: The story as a character able to interact with the characters of a play. Plays often began in the morning and lasted into the evening. The theatres were built on a large scale to accommodate a large number of performers on stage and in the audience—up to fourteen thousand . Physics and mathematics played a significant role in the construction of these theatres, as their designers had to be able to create acoustics in them such that
9270-455: The symphony orchestra. The American critic Greg Sandow has argued in detail that orchestras must revise their approach to music, performance, the concert experience, marketing, public relations, community involvement, and presentation to bring them in line with the expectations of 21st century audiences immersed in popular culture. Ancient Greek theatre A theatrical culture flourished in ancient Greece from 700 BC. At its centre
9373-411: The time-honored season-subscription system became increasingly anachronistic, as more and more listeners would buy tickets on an ad-hoc basis for individual events. Orchestral endowments and — more centrally to the daily operation of American orchestras — orchestral donors have seen investment portfolios shrink, or produce lower yields, reducing the ability of donors to contribute; further, there has been
9476-406: The top orchestras, occasionally fake certain passages. One reason that musicians fake is because there are not enough rehearsals. Another factor is the extreme challenges in 20th century and 21st century contemporary pieces; some professionals said "faking" was "necessary in anything from ten to almost ninety per cent of some modern works". Professional players who were interviewed were of
9579-569: The tragedies, but in a purely comedic manner. The power of Athens declined following its defeat in the Peloponnesian War against Sparta . From that time on, the theatre started performing old tragedies again. Although its theatrical traditions seem to have lost their vitality, Greek theatre continued into the Hellenistic period (the period following Alexander the Great 's conquests in the fourth century BC). The primary Hellenistic theatrical form
9682-415: The tragic chorus, they all wear the same mask because they are considered to be representing one character. Stylized comedy and tragedy masks said to originate in ancient Greek theatre have come to widely symbolize the performing arts generally. Illustrations of theatrical masks from 5th century display helmet-like masks, covering the entire face and head, with holes for the eyes and a small aperture for
9785-626: The various European regions. The Baroque orchestra ranged from smaller orchestras (or ensembles) with one player per part, to larger-scale orchestras with many players per part. Examples of the smaller variety were Bach's orchestras, for example in Koethen, where he had access to an ensemble of up to 18 players. Examples of large-scale Baroque orchestras would include Corelli's orchestra in Rome which ranged between 35 and 80 players for day-to-day performances, being enlarged to 150 players for special occasions. In
9888-470: The world's top five by Gramophone in 2008). The last major orchestra to appoint a woman to a permanent position was the Berlin Philharmonic . In February 1996, the Vienna Philharmonic's principal flute, Dieter Flury , told Westdeutscher Rundfunk that accepting women would be "gambling with the emotional unity ( emotionelle Geschlossenheit ) that this organism currently has". In April 1996,
9991-510: Was called the episkenion . Some theatres also had a raised speaking place on the orchestra called the logeion . By the end of the 5th century BC, around the time of the Peloponnesian War, the skené was two stories high. The death of a character was always heard behind the skené , for it was considered inappropriate to show a killing in view of the audience. Conversely, there are scholarly arguments that death in Greek tragedy
10094-416: Was imperative that the actors hear in order to orient and balance themselves. Thus, it is believed that the ears were covered by substantial amounts of hair and not the helmet-mask itself. The mouth opening was relatively small, preventing the mouth being seen during performances. Vervain and Wiles posit that this small size discourages the idea that the mask functioned as a megaphone, as originally presented in
10197-408: Was not tragedy but New Comedy , comic episodes about the lives of ordinary citizens. The only extant playwright from the period is Menander . One of New Comedy's most important contributions was its influence on Roman comedy, an influence that can be seen in the surviving works of Plautus and Terence . Most ancient Greek cities lay on or near hills, so seating was generally built into the slope of
10300-399: Was portrayed off stage primarily because of dramatic considerations, and not prudishness or sensitivity of the audience. A temple nearby, especially on the right side of the scene, is almost always part of the Greek theatre complex. This could justify, as a transposition, the recurrence of the pediment with the later solidified stone scene. The orchestra was a circular piece of ground at
10403-487: Was the exarchon , or leader, of the dithyrambs performed in and around Attica, especially at the Rural Dionysia . By Thespis' time, the dithyramb had evolved far away from its cult roots. Under the influence of heroic epic, Doric choral lyric and the innovations of the poet Arion , it had become a narrative, ballad-like genre. Because of these, Thespis is often called the "Inventor of Tragedy"; however, his importance
10506-522: Was the city-state of Athens , which became a significant cultural, political, and religious place during this period, and the theatre was institutionalised there as part of a festival called the Dionysia , which honoured the god Dionysus . Tragedy (late 500 BC), comedy (490 BC), and the satyr play were the three dramatic genres emerged there. Athens exported the festival to its numerous colonies. Modern Western theatre comes, in large measure, from
10609-499: Was the first poet we know of to use a historical subject – his Fall of Miletus , produced in 493–2, chronicled the fate of the town of Miletus after it was conquered by the Persians. Herodotus reports that "the Athenians made clear their deep grief for the taking of Miletus in many ways, but especially in this: when Phrynichus wrote a play entitled The Fall of Miletus and produced it, the whole theatre fell to weeping; they fined Phrynichus
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