Naxos Records — The Learning Zone of the Nexus Records website has an introduction to classical music, biographies of composers, a glossary of musical terms, and an excellent guide to live-concert listening. You can also stream loads of classical pieces, making this a great place to visit if you want to listen to a work a couple of times before you hear it in concert.
At the beginning of the concert, the concertmaster will come onstage. The audience claps as a welcome, and as a sign of appreciation to all the musicians.
After the orchestra tunes, Maestro Bay or on occasion, a guest conductor and possibly a soloist will come onstage. Everyone claps to welcome them, too. This is also a good moment to make sure your program is open, so you can see the names of the pieces that will be played and their order. When everything settles down, the music begins. Just listen and enjoy! In most classical concerts, unlike jazz or pop, the audience never applauds during the music. They wait until the end of each piece.
But this can be a little tricky, because many pieces seem to end several times — in other words, they have several parts, or movements. These are listed in your program. In general, musicians and your fellow listeners prefer not to hear applause during the pauses between these movements, so they can concentrate on the progress from one movement to the next.
Not sure when the piece is over? Watch the conductor, who will lower the baton at the conclusion of a work. Turn it off! The same goes for pagers and alarm watches. Better still, leave them at home if you can. Skip to primary navigation Skip to main content Tips for Beginners. What should I expect? Do I need to study beforehand?
Will I recognize any of the music? What is the difference between your Masterworks Series and your Pops Series? What should I wear? Should I arrive early? How long is the concert? Can I take pictures? Why is there an intermission, and what should I do during it?
Can I bring my kids? And the music itself demanded a change. When Beethoven began his Ninth Symphony with ten bars of otherworldly pianissimo, he was defying the norms of his time, essentially imagining a new world in which the audience would await the music in an expectant hush. Soon enough, that world came into being. The first time, it opened the program, with miscellaneous fare ensuing works of Federici, Schneider, and Naumann.
The idea of the curated program—of the concert as intellectual journey—was beginning to take hold. The work ends with the cellist hovering ethereally around the notes B and F-sharp, trilling and bowing near the bridge or the fingerboard.
Both nights, the audience added to the spell by making no sound. Neither effect would have registered in the Paris of Credit the bourgeoisie, then, for enabling new kinds of expression. But there was a downside to the middle-class revolution, as Weber unblinkingly shows in his book. For years, he has been gathering data on late-eighteenth- and nineteenth-century performances, and he summarizes his findings in graphs showing how works of dead composers came to dominate concerts in Paris, London, Leipzig, and Vienna.
In , in Leipzig, the percentage was as low as eleven. By , it was around fifty, going as high as seventy-four in Vienna. It's shorter and easier to say, and nowadays everyone shortens Symphony Orchestra to simply just Symphony.
It technically doesn't even make sense, since the word "symphony" here is describing the size of the orchestra, so we're essentially just saying "The Kamloops Big" but big WHAT?!?!? And yet, we all do it because it's shorter and easier to say.
Also, there is often confusion between a Symphony Orchestra and a Philharmonic Orchestra. They are both the same thing Both orchestras are typically the same same size and perform the same type of music. The word "philharmonic" means "devoted to music" and the term is most often used to help tell the difference between two orchestra in the same area - for example the Brooklyn Philharmonic Orchestra and the Brooklyn Symphony Orchestra.
If you've been to a concert before, you'll notice that before they being performing the orchestra tunes up. But you may wonder why they always tune to the oboe. What makes the oboe so special? The first orchestras were mainly formed by string players. Oboes were added in initially just to strengthen the sound of the first and second violins, and then composers quickly realized that the oboe's bright, singing tone could be utilized much better, and the oboes got their own unique parts.
The oboe has a penetrating sound that stands out from the rest of the orchestra, making it easy for all the musicians on stage to hear. Its pitch is also steadier than strings, making it a more reliable tuning source.
There's also the longevity factor: flutes, bassoons, French horns, and clarinets have all drifted in and out of the orchestra, but the oboe has almost always been written into orchestral scores. It is difficult to adjust the pitch of an oboe. Therefore the other instruments in a performance must be made to match, and that is why the oboe is the standard for tuning. We only have a few rehearsals together before each performance. For a typical Masterworks concert, we will have 4 rehearsals including the dress rehearsal and then the concert.
For a typical Pops concert, we only have 2 rehearsals before the show. Each musician is given their parts well in advance of the concert, and they come to the first rehearsal having already fully learned their parts. This way rehearsals can focus solely on making sure all the moving parts are fitting together properly, as well as the balance, blend, and shaping of the music.
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Symphony A Newcomer's Guide To outsiders, classical music can seem like an ancient ritual, an activity that you can only enjoy as a member of a secret organization. This includes the kettledrums, the harp, and, on occasion, the piano. Some works use lots of different percussion; others may have a single musician playing the kettledrums, or no percussion at all. The percussion section is also found at the back of the orchestra. What should I expect? This if the time to let go of any preconceptions you may have about classical music or the concert experience.
Open yourself up to the music. Let it trigger your emotions—maybe even your memories. Feel the rhythms; follow the tunes. Watch the musicians and the conductor, and see how they interact with each other. Notice how the music ebbs and flows—surging and powerful at some times, delicate and ephemeral at others, and everything in between.
Do I need to study beforehand? The music will speak for itself. Just come and enjoy! Over time, many frequent concertgoers do find their enjoyment is deeper if they prepare for a concert. This can be simple, like reading the program notes beforehand; or it can be more involved, like listening to recordings of the music to be performed in the days before they attend a concert.
You know yourself best, so if research interests you, go ahead and follow your curiosity. Just listen with an open mind. Will I recognize any of the music? Classical music is all around us: in commercials, movie soundtracks, television themes, cartoons, retail shops, and even some elevators! Popular music often quotes classical melodies, too. What should I wear? Anything that makes you feel comfortable is fine.
Some people enjoy dressing up and making a special night of it, and you can, too. Should I arrive early? Plan to arrive 20 minutes before concert time, so you can find your seat, turn off your cell phone, take a look at your surroundings, absorb the atmosphere, and have time to glance through the program book, too. Many concertgoers make a point of coming early to read the program notes, watch the orchestra warm up, attend the pre-concert talk , listen to music in the lobby, or just enjoy the lobby concessions and talk with friends.
How long will the concert be? Very often there will be several pieces on the concert; but sometimes there is one single work played straight through. When should I clap? At the beginning of the concert, the concertmaster will come onstage. The audience claps as a welcome, and as a sign of appreciation to all the musicians. After the orchestra tunes, the conductor and possibly a soloist will come onstage. Everyone claps to welcome them, too. This is also a good moment to make sure your program is open, so you can see the names of the pieces that will be played and their order.
What if I need to cough during the music?
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