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A Practical Guide to Orchestra Survival

September 21, 2023, 5:21 PM · It’s the beginning of the school year for many and the beginning of a new artistic season for all of us. With the return of school, youth, community, and professional orchestras comes a new workload for busy musicians and the question: How do I learn all of this music?

I’ve been working with several of my students who are in an orchestra for the very first time this year, and here is the advice I have been giving them. Hopefully some of this is helpful for you too!

1. Obtain recordings of your orchestra music.

The pedagogue Edmund Sprunger once said, "Listening is the closest thing we have to magic." The second you get your orchestra repertoire list, make a playlist for yourself that includes multiple recordings of each piece, if possible, and listen daily. If you’re a Suzuki student and already have a daily listening habit, add in your orchestra music to this. If listening is new for you, try pairing listening with something else - the commute to school or work, doing homework, cleaning around the house, eating a meal, or even in the background while scrolling on the phone.

Why listen? Listening will familiarize your brain and your ear not only with the sound of your own part, but also with the sound of the whole orchestra. It will fast-track your learning and ease your practicing because you already will know what the music is supposed to sound like. Listening also will make rehearsals go better because you know what to expect from the other sections.

2. Write fingerings and bowings into your part as early as possible.

Depending on orchestra librarians and section leaders, it may not be possible to get final bowings during initial rehearsals, but it’s a good thing to prioritize having a neat and correct piece of music in front of you.

Always have a pencil at rehearsal! Keep up-to-date on changes that the concertmaster or section leader makes to bowings, and mark in instructions from the conductor regarding tempo, dynamics, phrasing, etc. Write in tricky fingerings - the rules for this are: if you are sitting on the outside, write over the notes, if you are sitting on the inside, write below. If you miss a note or bowing - especially if it is more than once - write in a reminder. Stay on top of bowings, accidentals, key changes, tempo changes, fingerings, etc.

3. Craft a practice plan that is firmly grounded in reality.

I once had a student who played through all of their orchestra music every day and was becoming exhausted as a result. Luckily, the parent brought this to my attention, so we talked about prioritizing different sections of music.

First, set a limit on how much time will be devoted to orchestra music, so that it doesn't completely take over your other goals for musical growth. Then identify pieces and sections that need the most practice and focus your time and attention on those. When it comes to easier pieces and sections, spend less practice time on those. It sounds simple, but this does require consciously categorizing different passages in your orchestra music. Here are some categories to consider:

• Sightreadable - music you can play easily, at tempo, and can just pick up in rehearsal. You don't need to spend your home practice time on this.
• Some practice needed - these are passages where you need to work out fingerings, or figure out a tricky rhythm, but will be fine after one or two practice sessions. Prioritize these early in the process so that you can eliminate them from the practice list and feel confident about them in rehearsals.
• Lots of practice needed - these are the tricky spots, the ones that you need to really break down and practice daily until the concert - in fact, you may be practicing these onstage right up until the concert starts. Mark these in your music so you can find them easily and prioritize playing through them slowly every day.
• Unplayable at this time - Just being realistic here - there may be sections of your orchestra music that you know that you will never be able to play for this concert, due to the tempo, technical level, etc.- even with help from your teacher. In this situation, you might need to fake it. NOTE: If the MAJORITY of your music falls into this category, you might want to look into a different ensemble. Faking is a short term solution for certain passages, but long-term, it can really hurt your musical development. About 90% of your orchestra music should fall into categories A, B, and C. But if it is unplayable, start on the right note and end with everyone else, playing very softly, keeping tempo, and matching bow direction in between.

  Why do I think it’s worth it to plan to fake? Because your practice time is a valuable commodity. If spend 30 minutes a day practicing and agonizing over one passage - only to end up faking it in the concert anyway - then that’s time that you could have spent practicing a passage that is within your technical range, or building your technique so that in another year, you’ll be able to play a similar passage with ease.

If you’re not sure about how to categorize your orchestra music for practice, talk to your private teacher if you have one, or someone else you trust who knows your playing.

4. Increase your playing time gradually, and make a plan to take care of your body.

Practicing at home, when you can take breaks as much as you want, is very different from sitting in orchestra rehearsal for multiple hours. Also, if you’ve only been practicing 30 minutes a few days a week, then suddenly you increase your practice time to manage your orchestra repertoire, this is a recipe for injury. It can be tempting to cram practice into one long session (especially if your conductor is really demanding a high standard of playing right way), but prioritize your physical well-being. If you have reached your physical threshold for practicing, there are other things you can do: listen to a recording and follow along with your sheet music. Categorize every section of music, and plan which days you’ll practice which ones.

It’s also important to warm up your body before you start playing. A few suggestions include:

• Arm and shoulder circles to get everything moving
• Slow, static stretches after you’re done playing to signify to your body that it’s done for the day.

Talk to your teacher or do some research on health for musicians to learn more.

Wishing everyone an exciting, healthy, and musical season of orchestra!

You might also like:

• Orchestra Rehearsal Etiquette
• Four Pre-Playing Warmup Stretches for Violinists and Violists
• Orchestra Playing: Flying as One with the Flock

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