Related - why are there no saxophones in the orchestra? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsfPS7pXg1E

do British brass bands use a specific layout compared to brass bands from other countries? But we all know from experience that brass sections can be really loud with almost no effort involved

Neurology has shown that a lesion of the string section induces a local dispersion response, therefore we propose to rename this area the cohesion promoting region, replacing the previous name of tan-ish matter, which was based on outward appearance of the structure.

Some notes here. The concertmaster is the leader of the orchestra (the conductor is not a member of the orchestra and good orchestras typically work with many different conductors) so they will usually decide or advice the conductor who is best suited to play a particular solo.

That the most experienced/best player sits at chair 1 of a section is just a convention that was established over time but not a hard requirement.

> As far as I know, there's no standard way for the composer to notate a solo for, say, violin[1][15]

Because the composer doesn't notate who plays what. The performers decide this. Writing "Solo played by violin[1][15]" makes as much sense as writing "Solo played by Tim from accounting".

I have seen orchestras rotate the solo part through the different nights to give more people a chance to play it but that was an amateur performance and is rare for professional orchestras that rely on perfect deliveries.

It’s quite common for the first oboe to play the tuning pitch.

> As far as I know, there's no standard way for the composer to notate a solo for, say, violin[1][15]

Because it doesn’t make sense. You don’t know who sits there. You just want the sound of a solo violin, and the first chairs have gotten to their position because they can deliver.

There are all sorts of weird annotations in scores though, so if you think that one part sounds best when played from the last row, you can just say so in the score.

> (or, to use a safer Javascript notation to cover cases of smaller orchestras, violin[-1]).

I believe you either meant `Python notation` or `violin.at(-1)` with https://github.com/tc39/proposal-relative-indexing-method

I’ve been both concertmaster and second chair in younger orchestras. They both are great roles but very different.

Concertmaster has a similar level of pressure to the conductor. You’ve got more attention on you and the audience takes more queues from how you play, so you’re a kind of soloist all the time. Many violinist prefer not to be directly in the spotlight all the time so, while there is competition for the role, generally there’s some relief knowing you can count on the best player to lead.

The concertmaster is also the right hand of the conductor. Thats why they come out just beforehand and tune the orchestra. They will also remind the orchestra with subtle queues on any recent instructions from the conductor, especially on pace/timing. If there are soloists performing, the concertmaster works extra closely with them (often including more practice sessions).

Once the hierarchy is settled generally the envy dies down, though inevitably there’s politics as others in the orchestra have their own opinions on who is best/who should lead.

A second chair does need to be able to step up if the concertmaster gets sick. The surprise factor here is definitely challenging but, having played first chair a few times because of it, I had fun getting the spotlight and the opportunity to audition for the future first chair role through my performance.

Concertmaster is similar to a lot of leadership demands - you both have to be an outlier top tier in individual performance and perceived as a good leader by the rest of the orchestra. Other instruments already feel violins get all the attention and that violinists are oblivious to the privilege, so it goes a long way to demonstrate your respect and support for the other first chairs. I personally found a strong relationship with the first chair cellos was key.

I did play a piece where parts of a solos were distributed throughout the orchestra. We all had a lot of fun with that, quite the challenge to make it feel seamless. Dvorak and Brahms both used the mechanic to create unique instrumental voicing.

> [...] play an "a" at 440 Hertz to tune up the orchestra

I was curious why A? The most common reason that turned up in search was that every string instrument in an orchestra has an A string.

That makes sense, since bowed string instruments need one hand for the bow and one hand to press the string to the fingerboard for any note that isn't being played on an open string.

That doesn't fully explain it though because they also all have G and D strings.

One explanation said that it is because A is the highest open string pitch they have in common. Higher pitches are easier to hear in a group.

<sings>

Seventy-six trombones led the big parade

With a hundred and ten cornets close at hand

(I have no idea why that's still in my head, I probably haven't heard it for 40 years or more... https://genius.com/Cast-of-the-music-man-seventy-six-trombon... )

That's an amazing performance, thanks for sharing! (Is it just me or the brass instruments are slightly out of tune? Though gives it a special charm since all of them are out of tune the same way)

It's pretty difficult to play any classical instrument at the level required for elite philharmonic/symphony orchestras. It's why musicians all have to min-max on that instrument from an early age and go through many years of coaching and practice.

Playing the violin at an elite level seems to require a much earlier starting point, so I think that signals a higher level of difficulty. The range of possible sounds while being an incredibly unforgiving instrument in terms of sound quality add to this.

But I believe its stardom comes from its versatility and timbre.

Versatility: It can play any key naturally. Its relatively small size allows for fast passages to be played relatively easily. It can play two notes at a time, and even three or four in quick succession to simulate a chord. It is expressive in a way a tuba isn't.

Timbre/Expression: The Western classical tradition valued the Soprano voice as the "main" voice for melodies. The violin was more or less designed to emulate this voice and the characteristic agility, lightness, and clarity that defined any melody line given to it. So, composers would reach for the violin and make it the star of their compositions. As time went on, the tradition stuck, the virtuosity increased, and the ensembles grew ever larger and larger so the violin sections grew larger and larger.

For whatever reason, the Western Classical Tradition doesn't quite like the sound of, say, a French Horn, dominating the melody line the same way violins do.

What leads me to believe this is all the musical traditions that started off with violins and then quickly ditched them once an instrument that provided the needed versatility and timbre the tradition demanded. Here, I'm mostly thinking of Jazz. Jazz violin was common during the early days of the genre, but quickly fell out of favor in comparison to the guitar, the trumpet, the saxophone, and the piano. For many of the same reasons the violin became the star of the Classical world.

It's also why violins don't really go with rock music. The guitar has the versatility required and the vocal expressiveness that suits the genre.

This is mostly due to historical reasons and the way Western music has been written.

The hierarchy in a symphonic orchestra is highly structured. Each section (a group of musicians playing the same instrument and part) has a leader, who usually plays the solo part (hence the title "solo violin" or "first chair"). The leader of the first violin section is the "concertmaster," typically seated next to the conductor and responsible for leading the entire string section. In orchestras without a conductor, the concertmaster often assumes that role.

Each string player follows their section leader, who, in turn, follows the concertmaster, who follows the conductor. This is why they are seated at the front.

When the conductor and the violin take a bow the brass section could make some fart sounds. That'll show 'em.

That would be the concertmaster. When music was often played without a conductor, it was the concertmaster who would lead the ensemble. They serve, musically, and sometimes organizationally, as the head or representative of the orchestra. In modern symphonic ensembles they come on stage separately to tune the ensemble. I'm guessing it's just tradition at this point.

As to why the focus and acclaim, I think it's a combination of a few things. The first is a very, very high skill ceiling. I've heard that French horn can be harder to play, but violin is definitely considered to be among the hardest. Then there's also repertoire. While there were early concerti for most instruments, it was even as early as Vivaldi where virtuosic violin rep started to appear. Then came Paganini and it was game over for the rest of the instruments. The sheer volume of pieces is why violin dominates over, say, cello. There may also be a physical size factor. You just can't cover the range of a cello or bass as fast as a violin, though I've seen some insanely impressive low string players.

Maybe that’s why there’s so many wind instruments in jazz, and rockabilly. I’ll show you busy.

Obligatory video showcasing this: https://youtu.be/WyvfKFVRqVs

Check out the scherzo of Schubert’s string quintet.

Yes, violins are the largest section in the orchestra to balance the sound of louder instruments like brass and to create a rich, full texture in the music.

I'm reminded of Stravinski's Rite of Spring, the first performance.

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rite_of_Spring#First_p...

> The complicated music and violent dance steps caused some to boo. They started to shout and whistle. They argued, and other people who liked it argued back. Then some people started to fight. In the end the police were called. Stravinksy was very upset and ran out of the theatre. The performance was a scandal, but this actually made people curious and soon the ballet became very famous. It was performed six times that season, and there were no more interruptions during the other performances.

I had a similarly negative reaction when I listened to it for the first time, but over time it turned into the opposite, it's addictive and I have to go back and listen to at least parts of it once in a while.

Still, just because this performance caused some violent negative reactions does not mean anything that is at first rejected is good. If it still sounds unappealing the second and third time, it's probably not for you unless your taste changes a lot.

Recommendation (a truly excellent free course for the interested non-music-professional "HarvardX: First Nights - Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring: Modernism, Ballet, and Riots"): https://www.edx.org/learn/music-arts/harvard-university-firs...

Proper compositions use the perfect 5th as the soul source of harmony, as in 10th century Gregorian chant and liturgical music (the peak of human creativity, put to its proper purpose.)

Any other dissonant intervals (major 3rds, etc.) are the work of the devil.

1950s era DCI, JP Sousa, brass band works by Elgar and Vaughn Williams, it’s all a discordant mess, created to titillate an unruly (and ungodly) audience.

You have to listen to the notes they're not playing.

This immediately made me think of outrage clickbait.

So much stuff is wrapped in the veil of shock/outrafe now, that maybe people even think it creative?

When I look youtube, even quality videos about "how to dig a trench for a sump pump" often have a preview showing some horrible thing happening, or the guy with an anguished look on his face, and a title of "don't let this happen to you!"

What if the height of creativity is now "we shocked/annoyed you".