=The Orchestra as a Means of Expression=.—The most perfect means for
expression in music is presented by the orchestra, which, in its
complete form as shown today, is the result of a long development in
many directions. To give us this magnificent mass-instrument required a
sifting of the various instruments and the choice of those that offered
the best possibilities, a perfecting of these instruments, a shaping of
systems of playing them, of technic that should draw out all possible
effects, and an understanding, on the part of composers, of the nature
and demands of absolute music and how best to shape their conceptions
in accordance with these demands. The orchestra and its music,
therefore, represents the extreme height of man’s work in music, for
even when choral forces are joined to the orchestra, the instrumental
idea dominates, as, for example, in the Ninth Symphony of Beethoven, in
which the chorus is simply a _vocal band_ added to the other groups.
The orchestra is a great means for musical expression because it
offers to the composer the maximum of resources. In modern days, when
the esthetic principle of Unity in Variety receives the most elastic
interpretation due to the demand for the greatest possible contrasts
in tone-color, power and in nuances, all, however, intended to exhibit
and illumine the themes invented by the composer in their various
transformations, in these days the orchestra is truly the most complete
art-means known.
=Groups in the Orchestra=.—The orchestra is composed of groups
of instruments allied by similarity of construction. The usual
classification is into three main groups, =strings=, (bowed
instruments), =wind= and =percussion= instruments. In the former are
included the violins, viola, violoncello and double or contra-bass;
=wind= instruments subordinate into =wood wind= and =brass=, the
former include instruments of the flute, oboe, bassoon and clarinet
families, the latter horns, trumpets, trombones, tuba or other bass
instruments; the =percussion= includes kettle drums, other drums,
triangles, cymbals, etc.; the =harp=, while a stringed instrument, is
not included in that class. These instruments offer a great variety
of effects, singly and in many possible combinations, in the peculiar
effects possible by variety in playing, which in bowed instruments
is considerable, and particularly by contrast with each other. While
the orchestra today is in a highly developed condition, composers are
seeking to extend the limits of their art by the use of more elaborate
and subtle forms; so that we cannot in any wise predict the course and
limits of absolute music with the almost unlimited resources at its
disposal in the modern orchestra.
=Purpose in Combination=.—When we consider the orchestra as a
combination of instruments we must bear in mind that this combination
is the result of a definite purpose to produce music independent
of restrictions such as were shown to have existed in the days of
the domination of the Church. The composers of the early polyphonic
period and up to the 17th century bent their efforts to the
composition of choral music which was sung for many years without
instrumental support. When later the organ, and still later, viols
and other instruments were drafted into the service of church music,
the accompaniments were not independent of the voice, but merely
doubled the various parts. Composers thought in _terms of voices_
and their limitations, _not in_ the greater range and endurance of
_instruments_. Then, too, the instruments were crude and their tone
lacked distinctiveness as well as the comparative sweetness and purity
of the vocal music of that day. Combinations of instruments existed in
the Middle Ages, but not according to a system, and were due to the
executants who assembled them rather than to the demand for them in the
works of composers. It was in the attempts at light dramatic music that
preceded the establishment of the opera that instruments were grouped
together, showing a great weakness, from our point of view, in stringed
instruments played with the bow, and a corresponding preponderance of
brass.
=Influence of the Opera=.—The first composers of opera and oratorio
gave instrumental support to the singers, although it was very meager.
Yet the opera gave the help of that great principle of invention,
necessity, and composers began to experiment with various combinations
of instruments to secure a more adequate accompaniment for the voice as
well as to heighten the effects demanded by the drama. =Monteverde=, an
independent thinker and innovator, marked out lines in which efforts
should be made by successors. He studied the _characteristic effects
of_ the various _groups_ and made use of them as he felt them. His
orchestra for “Orfeo” (1608) was made up of two harpsichords, ten tenor
viols, two bass viols, two “little French violins,” one double harp,
two organs of wood, one regal, two viole de gamba, two large guitars,
two cornets, two trombones, three trumpets with mutes, one octave
flute, one clarion. The most significant item is found in the “little
French violins,” which presages the appearance of the instrument
which was, a century later, to be recognized as the backbone of the
orchestra. Among the distinctive instrumental effects which Monteverde
introduced was the =tremolo= for bowed string instruments as well
as the =pizzicato=. In looking over the instruments of Monteverde’s
orchestra we will note but _one_ wood wind, the flute. This shows that
composers, doubtless through the military use of brass and drums, had
accepted the latter as means for special effects. Instruments of the
_wood wind_ type were still too _crude_ to be admitted. =Alessandro
Scarlatti=, who did so much for the opera from the side of form and
content, also contributed to the development of orchestral music. He
evidently perceived the importance of having a nucleus around which
to build his harmonies, a group of instruments which should furnish a
firm support and which could blend the various tone qualities. With the
intuition of genius he selected the =string tone= for this purpose, and
in this he was greatly aided by the fact that the Amati family, and
their successors, Guarnerius and Stradivarius, had already perfected
the violin, although the great players were yet to come. Scarlatti
wrote in four parts for the string instruments, the treble part to the
first violin, the alto to the second, the tenor part to the viola,
which previously had often played in unison with the double bass, while
the bass part was taken by ’cellos and basses. He also added =oboes=
and =bassoons= to the strings and brass. Lully in France used an
orchestra similar to that adopted by Scarlatti. The =kettle-drums= now
come into use. The works of Corelli and his violinist successors, which
showed the possibility of writing for strings, undoubtedly influenced
orchestral writing.
=Bach and Handel=.—We now come to the period of Bach and Handel, each
distinct in methods, the latter the more immediately influential in the
development of the orchestra, the former’s principles of writing in
the =polyphonic style= not being taken up until after years by Wagner
and more recently by the extreme modern composers with their free
polyphony. In a Bach score each instrument had an independent part to
sing, and was treated from a musical standpoint, whereas the tendency
of other composers was to seek figures and passages which should be
characteristic of the instrument, the standpoint of effect. This
particularly applies to the wind instruments. =Handel’s= idea seemed
to be the building up of great =mass effects=, his style partook of
the =harmonic= rather than the polyphonic. He used all the important
instruments found in the modern orchestra except the _clarinet_,
although the proportion of the wind instruments to the strings is
greater, due to the relatively inferior power of these instruments in
Handel’s time.
=Haydn and Mozart=.—From Handel we pass to the first of his three great
successors, =Haydn=, who has been called the “father of the symphony,”
who determined, in fact, the course of orchestral development. And
we should not overlook the fact before-mentioned, namely, that the
professional violinists, most of whom were also directors of orchestras
in the pay of great princes, were testing the capacities and resources
of the instruments used. In the period which Haydn represents, the
_proportions of the instruments_ in the orchestra were definitely
_fixed_ and the size of the string band became relatively greater,
the _’cello_ coming in to greater prominence in its use as a _melody
instrument_. Haydn’s last symphony, written in 1795, calls for two
flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, two kettle drums, and
the usual string band. This was the combination which Haydn selected
as the most useful and effective, as the result of his experience as
a conductor for many years. It was to =Mozart= that the introduction
of the =clarinet= into the orchestra is due, for Haydn did not employ
this instrument in his earlier works. The clarinet began to take an
effective form about the end of the 17th century, yet it was not until
the 19th century that it received the improvements that now make it one
of the most useful instruments in the orchestra, with a wonderfully
facile technic and correct intonation. The greatest of these changes
was the application, to the clarinet, of the system of keys and
fingering invented by =Theobald Boehm= (1794-1881) for the flute. In
addition to showing the value of the clarinet as an instrument, Mozart
pointed the way to some uses of the =trombone=. His E-flat Symphony
is scored for one flute, two clarinets, two bassoons, two horns, two
trumpets, tympani and strings; in the score of the “Jupiter” symphony,
the clarinet does not appear.
=Beethoven= established the orchestra as “the composer’s instrument.”
He added but little to the instruments used but he took the resources
established by his predecessors and demonstrated what could be done
with them. Every group of instruments was used with more detail and
to produce characteristic effects both separately and in combination.
In his first and second symphonies he uses the same orchestra:
two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, two horns, two
trumpets, tympani and strings; in the “Eroica,” a third horn part is
added; the fourth has the same orchestra as the first two, except
that one flute is dropped; the fifth calls for piccolo, two flutes,
two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, contra-bassoon, two horns,
two trumpets, three trombones, tympani and strings; in the sixth
he uses the same orchestra as in the fifth, except that he drops
the contra-bassoon and one trombone; in the seventh and eighth the
orchestra is the same as in his first and second symphonies. In the
ninth (Choral Symphony) he calls for a larger orchestra: piccolo, two
flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, contra-bassoon, four
horns, two trumpets, three trombones, tympani, triangle, cymbals, bass
drum and strings. It will be noted that Beethoven does _not use the
harp_. It was not until 1820, seven years before Beethoven’s death,
that Erard invented the double-action harp, an effective and a playable
instrument.
=Berlioz, Wagner and Richard Strauss=.—The composer who first made
an exhaustive study of orchestral instruments, their distinctive
qualities, separately and in combinations, was =Berlioz=, who gave
to the world his knowledge in his “Treatise on Instrumentation,”
published in 1844. Berlioz gave to every one of his works a more or
less distinctive quality by varying the composition of his orchestra
instead of using the conventional combinations. He made frequent use
of the harp, bass clarinet, English horn, bass tuba, besides other
less frequently used instruments. He very much enlarged the scope of
orchestral music by the new effects he devised. =Richard Wagner=, in
his great music dramas, makes use of many new means of dramatic musical
effects, introducing new instruments, enlarging the various families,
dividing the strings into eight parts, increasing the number of brass
instruments, giving to his scores a richness of power and a sonorous
quality unknown before his time. =Richard Strauss= is, today, the
greatest master of the technic of orchestral writing. His tone-poems
make greater demands on the resources of the instruments and contain
effects beyond those of Wagner.
[Illustration: HECTOR BERLIOZ.]
=Hector Berlioz= (1803-1869) was the son of a French physician, who
designed him for his own profession. But the lad’s bent for music was
so strong that when sent to Paris to prepare for a medical degree, he
spent most of his time in going to the opera and in studying the scores
of the masters. Much against the will of his parents, he determined to
give up medicine and entered the _Conservatoire_. His early musical
training had been far from thorough and his career was at first not
successful. This added to his father’s displeasure, and he finally
withdrew all support from his son, who, rather than abandon his art,
struggled with the most crushing poverty until a violent illness
brought on by privation reconciled his parents to his choice of a
profession. After several unsuccessful attempts, he gained the great
Roman Prize, which entitled him to a period of study in Italy and
Germany at the cost of the State, but throughout his life he battled at
home with adverse and discouraging conditions, artistic and domestic.
Until after his death his works never received the recognition gladly
paid them in foreign countries, where he made frequent tours for
the purpose of producing them. His demand for exceptional means of
performance, based upon their large scope and previously unheard-of
effects, was ridiculed in France, where they were also considered
dissonant and bombastic; he encountered jealousy and intrigue at every
turn and bore them, too, in no patient spirit.
=His Important Works=.—As a winner of the Roman Prize, however, he
had a claim on the State. Thus his great “Te Deum,” written for three
choruses, soli, and orchestra, was one of several commissions from
the Government and was composed for the opening of the Exposition of
1855. Another similar colossal work is his “Requiem,” with its four
small orchestras of brass stationed at the corners of the principal
orchestra. These cross and re-cross with thrilling effect, simulating
the blowing of the last trump. His most popular and widely-known work,
“The Damnation of Faust,” a dramatic cantata now frequently heard in
this country and in Europe, failed to awaken the slightest interest
at its first performance in 1846 and involved the composer heavily in
debt. His enthusiasm for Shakespeare led to the composition of what
some consider his most important work, “Romeo and Juliet,” a symphony
for orchestra, solo voices and chorus. Berlioz’ genius was essentially
instrumental and symphonic in character; hence, though he composed a
number of operas, none was successful. Indeed, the failure of “Les
Troyens” (The Trojans), the subject of which was taken from the “Æneid”
and which he intended to be his masterpiece, was his death-blow.
=His Genius as an Orchestral Composer=.—Berlioz was the founder of
the modern school of orchestration, as well as the pioneer in the art
of expressing a definite program in terms of absolute music. Like
his great contemporary, Wagner, he was no executant; he played but
little and, curiously enough, only such insignificant instruments as
the flute, flageolet, and guitar. The orchestra was his instrument
and no one has ever had a more unerring instinct for its capabilities
either as a whole or in its component parts. In the origination of
weird, unearthly effects he had been anticipated by Weber, whom he
greatly admired; but he went beyond him in devising bold and daring
combinations, which he justified by the end in view, though it
cannot be said that a refined taste always finds this end in itself
justifiable. For example, in the last movement of his “Fantastic
Symphony,” he pictures an execution by the guillotine. A company
of witches and demons dance around the headless body and perform a
burlesque requiem—the whole supposed to be a nightmare suffered by
an artist under the influence of opium. Color rather than outline,
thrilling and novel effects of sonority, rhythmical variety and
animation, intensity of expression and dramatic climax are the
principal characteristics of Berlioz’ music. Yet delicacy and charm are
by no means lacking in his works. Irregular in proportion and unequal
in inspiration as they frequently are, they undoubtedly entitle him
to the distinction of being the greatest composer that France has yet
produced.
=The Music of the Orchestra= includes Symphonies, Overtures, Symphonic
Poems, Tone-Poems and Suites and the Concerto for a solo instrument
with orchestral support. The symphony is an elaborated sonata, and the
first movement is usually constructed on the principles recognized
under the term Sonata-form; the same principles are used in the
Overture, which consists of but a single movement. Liszt, in his
efforts in the program music style, devised the Symphonic Poem, which
aims to present a series of emotional pictures in the Symphonic style,
but with the various movements continuous. He advocated deriving _all_
themes from a _common source_, transforming them rhythmically as needed
to work out his conception. His successors in this style of music still
use the thematic methods devised by the writers in the true symphonic
style, but are free in their methods of construction and elaboration.