Piano Forum
Piano Board => Performance => Topic started by: sdphins on December 02, 2020, 02:04:29 AM
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Hey there,
I'm doing a school project and am writing about the importance of Beethoven's 3rd Symphony. I need some evidence so I thought it would be good to talk about the scope of it all. I can't find out how many musicians were in say a symphony by Haydn versus Eroica.
Thank you guys,
P.S. If you guys have any other ideas for evidence or other stuff I can talk about it would be much appreciated.
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I can't answer with the number, but I think you could change an approach to it. Number of musicians in an orchestra depends on many factors and not strictly on composers intentions. Every composer wants to have as many musicians as possible in their orchestra. The number of musicians depends on the size of the venu and who pays for it.
For comparison you should, I believe, focus on the number of voices/instruments on the score. Every voice/instrument, maybe apart from solos, can be multiplied, so the final size of the orchestra may differ from one concert to the next one and remember music is not measured by numbers.
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Yes thank you so much!
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Do you also think that talking about the early buddings of romanticism present in this symphony. Especially extra musical concepts.
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Roughly, it got bigger. New valved instruments were introduced - which allowed not only
a universal pitching (tuning) to the orchestra (which allowed for more instruments to play in tune w each other) but more diversity in the instruments'abilities.
The percussion section grew bigger. The string section grew bigger. Bigger and bigger until (exploding) in 1907 (as the Romantic period transitions out) Mahler comes out with his Sym. #8 . 'Symphony of a thousand'. (requiring 1028 performers! ;D