String Choir (1956)

[Music] in the modern symphony orchestra the string choir is the largest section the string instruments are the backbone of the entire orchestra with their great flexibility and range of tone the strings form the solid base upon which the conductor can bring to life the great works of symphonic music the string choir of the Symphony Orchestra is made up of violins of different sizes the bigger they are the deeper they play the tone range of the strings begins with the double basses they play the lowest notes in the orchestra above the double bassist is the violin cello section of all instruments the cello has the widest tone range sometimes singing the bass sometimes the baritone sometimes reaching up into the tenor range these deep string voices blend beautifully to form the foundation of the string choir [Music] [Music] the mellow middle voice of the string fire comes from the violas [Music] the violins provide the leading voice of the orchestra and are the largest section of the string choir [Music] the string choir was once the basis of all our kestrel music clustered around the harpsichord player who also acted as conductor they played much of the instrumental music of the 17th and early 18th centuries like this Christmas concerto by the Italian composer Corelli one of the fathers of the string orchestra [Music] [Applause] [Music] observe how rich Mozart's little night music sounds when played by over 50 string instruments [Music] [Music] a large string orchestra is usually seated in this way the first violin section at the left side of the stage the second violins at the right side the violas behind the second violins the violin cello section in the center [Music] and the double-basses at the rear because of the versatility of the string instruments composers are continually writing music for the string orchestra alone you're hearing Tchaikovsky's serenade for Strings [Music] [Music] the players in the string choir can make sounds not only with the bow but also by plucking the strings called vit ceccato [Music] [Music] the tone of the string instruments can also be changed mechanically by the use of a metal or plastic comb called a sword Ino [Music] strings can even become rhythm instruments when used in this somewhat unusual way [Music] however the principle function of the string choir is not to play by itself but to serve as the foundation of the entire Symphony Orchestra to illustrate the place of strings in the orchestra let us first hear the strings play alone the popular symphonic March and now hear the same melody played by the other members of the orchestra without the strings now it will sound as if played by a concert band which is a group of wind instruments balanced without the strings [Music] [Applause] here now the richness and fullness of tone of the Symphony Orchestra when the string choir joins the other instruments a fine illustration of the use of strings in the modern symphony orchestra is the tone poem for Moldau by the czech composer frederick Smetana in this tone poem the orchestra is painting a picture and sound of the river Moldau as it flows proudly across a historic plain of Central Europe [Music]