String section: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 23:52, 10 July 2021

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==Numbers and proportions==

The size of a string section may be expressed with a formula of the type (for example) 10-10-8-10-6, designating the number of first violins, second violins, violas, cellos, and basses. The numbers can vary widely: Wagner in ''[[Die Walküre]]'' specifies 16-16-12-12-8;<ref>{{Cite book|last=Millington|first=Barry|title=The New Grove Guide to Wagner and his Operas|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2006|___location=Oxford|pages=290}}</ref> the band orchestra in [[Darius Milhaud]]'s ''[[La création du monde]]'' is 1-1-0-1-1.<ref name="SPC">"Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra" (program notes), Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, 1999, TheSPCO.org webpage: [http://www.thespco.org/events/program_notes.cfm?id_program_notes=98 SPCO-98] {{webarchive|url=https://archive.istoday/20061001012158/http://www.thespco.org/events/program_notes.cfm?id_program_notes=98|date=2006-10-01}}</ref> In general, music from the [[Baroque music|Baroque]] period (ca. 1600-1750) and the [[Classical music period|Classical]] period (ca. 1720-1800) used (and is often played in the modern era with) smaller string sections. During the [[Romantic music|Romantic]] period (ca. 1800-1910), string sections were significantly enlarged to produce a louder, fuller string sound that could match the loudness of the large [[brass instrument|brass]] sections used in orchestral music from this period. During the [[20th-century classical music|modern]] era, some composers requested smaller string sections. In some regional orchestras, amateur orchestras and [[youth orchestra]]s, the string sections may be relatively small, due to the challenges of finding enough string players.

The music for a string section is not necessarily written in five parts; besides the variants discussed below, in classical orchestras the 'quintet' is often called a 'quartet', with basses and cellos playing together.