String section: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 13:12, 15 June 2020

Revision as of 08:35, 27 June 2020

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==Seating arrangement==

[[File:Orchestra sections sv labels.png|thumb|right|240px|One possible seating arrangement for an orchestra. First violins are labelled "Vln I"; second violins "Vln II", violas "Vla", and double basses (in German ''"Kontrabässe"'') are "Kb" ).]]

The most common seating arrangement in the 2000s is with first violins, second violins, violas and cello sections arrayed clockwise around the [[Conductor (music)|conductor]], with basses behind the cellos on the right.<ref>''Stanley Sadie's Music Guide'', p. 56 (Prentice-Hall 1986). [[Nicolas Slonimsky]] described the cellos-on-the-right arrangement as part of a 20th-century "sea change" (''Lectionary of Music'', p. 342 (McGraw-Hill 1989).</ref> The first violins are led by the [[concertmaster]] (leader in the UK); each of the other string sections also has a principal player (principal second violin, principal viola, principal cello and principal bass) who play the orchestral solos for the section, lead entrances and, in some cases, determine the bowings for the section (the concertmaster/leader may set the bowings for all strings, or just for the upper strings). The principal string players sit at the front of their section, closest to the conductor and on the row of performers which is closest to the audience.

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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; the band orchestra in [[Darius Milhaud]]'s ''[[La création du monde]]'' is 1-1-0-1-1. In general, music from the [[Baroque music]] era (ca. 1600-1750) and the [[Classical music period]] (ca. 1720-1800) used (and is often played in the modern era with) smaller string sections. During the [[Romantic music]] era (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]] sections used in orchestral music from this period. During the [[contemporary music]] 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.

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===Third violins===

[[Richard Strauss]]' ''[[Elektra (opera)|Elektra]]'' (1909) and ''[[Josephslegende]]'', the third movement of [[Shostakovich]]'s Symphony No. 5 and some of [[George Handel]]'s [[coronation anthem]]s, are notable examples of the violins being divided threefold.{{cncitation needed|date=December 2017}}

==In other musical genres==

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{{Violin family}}

[[Category:String section| ]]

[[Category:Bowed instruments]]

[[Category:Musical groups]]