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The small orchestra with a big sound ~ Bringing fine music to the Carson Valley. Music Director and Conductor :|: Danny Yale |
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The Orchestra wishes to acknowledge and thank those who have made generous donations which keep our concerts free! Please patronize their businesses and events whenever possible. |
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* Martha Williams ~ Antiques Plus in Genoa and Genoa Events * The Carson Valley Inn * * RE/MAX Realty Affiliates (John Fisher and Brad Spires) * The Smallwood Foundation * * The Oakmead Foundation * Douglas County Board of Commissioners * |
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©2004-2008 The Carson Valley Pops Orchestra, a non-profit organization. All Rights Reserved. PO Box 512 ~ Minden, NV 89423 |
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What is an orchestra, exactly? Most orchestras (like the Pops Orchestra or a Symphony Orchestra) are a collection of up to about 100 musicians who play instruments of four basic types:
Strings: violins (smallest and highest pitch), violas, cellos and basses (largest and lowest in pitch). These players sit in a semicircle, directly in front of the conductor and can make up more than half the orchestra. Woodwinds: flutes, oboes, clarinets, bassoons, and related instruments. These players sit a few rows back from the conductor, in the center of the orchestra. Brass: trumpets, horns, trombones, tubas, and similar instruments. These instruments are the loudest, so you’ll see them at the back of the orchestra. Percussion: the drums, bells, and other fascinating paraphernalia that are struck, plucked, rubbed, etc. This includes the timpani, the harp, and, on occasion, the piano. Some works use lots of different percussion; others may have a single musician playing the timpani, or no percussion at all. The percussion section is also found at, or near, the back of the orchestra. GLOSSARY OF MUSICAL TERMS ACOUSTICS: (1) The science of sound. (2) The properties of a concert hall or other building as they affect the sounds produced in it. CADENZA: A passage in a concerto in which the solo instrument performs without the orchestra. It is a way to display a performer’s virtuosity. CHAMBER MUSIC: Music for a small group of musicians, each part being played by one performer only. The classic form is a string quartet. CONCERTMASTER: The first violin chair - the concertmaster - is the leader of the musicians, responsible for many subtle aspects of pitch and unity throughout the concert. It is a position of honor. Years ago, when orchestras were smaller, the concertmaster was literally the "master" of the concert - the conductor. But as orchestras grew to 40, 50, 60 people and more, a musician playing could not physically conduct that large a group, and a conductor was required. The term applies to both males and females in this position. CONCERTO: A work for solo instrument or instruments, and orchestra. CONDUCTOR: The director of a musical performance for any sizeable body of performers. The use of a baton by the conductor became widely used in the 19th century as did the general authority of the conductor in all matters of interpretation. DYNAMICS: The variations of volume from loud to soft. ENSEMBLE: The collective term for a group of performers. ENTR’ACTE: Music that may be played between the acts of a play or opera. FANFARE: A flourish of trumpets. IMPROVISATION: Once a central part of the musician’s art, it draws on a performer’s melodic and rhythmic abilities to create an original musical “sentence.” It is an important element in the art of the jazz musician. INCIDENTAL MUSIC: Music written for stage plays. INSTRUMENTATION: A term used when appraising a composer’s skill in writing for individual instruments - the familiarity a composer shows with their techniques and the fullness to which he exploits their individual qualities. INTERLUDE: A short dramatic entertainment, sometimes given between the acts of a larger work. INTERMEZZO: Like the term before, it formerly referred to a piece of music played between the acts of an opera. INTONATION: The ability to pitch notes accurately (i.e., playing “in tune”). MORE >>> |
