The Orchestra

An orchestra is a large group of instrumentalist that contain sections of strings, brass, woodwind and percussion. These groups are usually made up of 80 or more musicians. Sometimes these orchestras use names like 'symphony orchestra' and 'philharmonic orchestra', but they do not specify any differences.

Overhead view of Philharmonia Orchestra. (Philharmonia Orchestra, Britain)

These are where the different sections are seated:

(Shockwave.com)

The String Section

The string section consists of 5 different types of string instruments:

The differences are in their sizes and pitch. Most people confuse the first 4 instruments. The violin is the smallest of these instruments, and also the one with the highest pitch range, while the double bass is the biggest, and has the lowest pitch range. Together, the string section can play a variety of notes across various pitches that make a piece of music sound complete.

Let's take look at one of the instruments in the string section!

Violin

The violin is a stringed instrument. It can be played by pulling a bow across the strings or by plucking the strings with fingers.

These are the parts of a violin:

Let us see how the violin is made!

The Brass Section

The brass section is named as such because the instruments in this category are made of brass. Different instruments are able to play different pitch ranges, and brass instruments alone can form a complete ensemble.

One of the main instruments in the brass section is the trumpet.

(blogs.sbschools.org)

The trumpet is one of the oldest instruments in the orchestra. It can play the highest notes among all the other brass instruments in the orchestra. The trumpet is played by blowing air through the mouth piece in a special way. The notes are changed by pressing different combinations of the 3 valves.

These are the parts of a trumpet:

Let's look at how the trumpet is made!

The Woodwind Section

Instruments in the woodwind section are named as such as in the past, the instruments in this section are all made of wood. With technological advances, woodwind instruments are now made of a mixture of wood, plastic and metal.


Let's explore one of the instruments from the woodwind family: the Bassoon!
It's pronounced: "bur-soon"

The bassoon is the lowest and largest of the woodwinds. The bassoon has a double reed and a cane which must be bounded together with wire and heavy thread. The reed fits onto the metal crook, or bocal, which is a curved metal tube that fits into the bassoon. People often compare its sound to a baritone's voice.


Let's now look at the parts of a Bassoon!

Wow. The bassoon looks rather complicated. How would you assemble it? Let's watch this video to find out more!



How does a bassoon sound like?
Lets listen to a group of bassonists play the theme of Pink Panther!

The Percussion Section

There are so many different kinds of percussion instruments!
With a name that means, "the hitting of one body against another," instruments in the percussion family are played by being struck, shaken, or scraped.
(dsokids.com)

Today we're going to focus on the timpani.

Timpani, are sometimes called kettledrums because they are shaped like big copper kettles. In fact they are often made of copper. They have a piece of calfskin or thin plastic stretched over their opening. This is called a drum head. Timpani are very important in the orchestra because they "underline" important chords. They are usually played in pairs - sometimes in threes or fours - because each drum is tuned to a different pitch
(playmusic.com)

Let's look carefully at a timpani!

Now, how would you play a timpani?
Let's look at how a Wii game mimicks the timpani!




Let's hear the timpani!
Watch the timpanist play a solo.