How many cellos in an orchestra

But have orchestras always had so many violins? And why do they need them? A symphony orchestra is usually made up of give or take around ten first violins and ten second violins, ten violas, eight cellos and six double basses.

Violins are well-suited to playing melody, making them one of the most important instruments in the orchestra. Firstly, they are the highest string instrument, so their bright tone rises above the rest of the string section.

Secondly, they are played with a bow, unlike woodwind or brass instrument which rely on air. This means that players are able to perform longer melodic passages with plenty of fast finger-work.

As composers have become more sophisticated, they moved beyond a simple SATB ordering of the string instruments. The violins carry the melody, particularly the first violins. Violas, slightly larger instruments than violins, put out a slightly deeper pitch and tone than the violin. Lower in pitch and capable of deeper, warmer tones, the cello is a melodic force that rivals the violin.

Due to its richer tones, the cellos often provide counterpoint melodies to the violins. A full orchestra will have anywhere from eight to twelve cellos. The basses, lined up so majestically behind the cellos have many names. Double bass. For so long, and in so many works, the role of the bass has been to double the cello part. Find out more here:. Find out more. The cello is the tenor voice in the string section. It can play an octave lower than the viola and, as with the other Strings, the cello section sits two to a desk.

There are usually between eight and twelve cellos in a symphony orchestra. Perhaps more than any other instrument the cello sound can create a melancholy mood. Its deep tenor voice can be further enhanced by a broad vibrato which on other instruments might sound ridiculous. With its particularly wide range and powerful sound it can one minute be playing a bass line and the next a melody that is high enough for the rest of the orchestra to move underneath.

Read more. The lower strings have a richer, darker sound and to exploit this it is quite common for composers to write that a particular phrase should be played on a particular string. There are 20th century works that have much greater number of voices. Another thing to bear in mind when considering playability is whether you want a solo violin or an ensemble violin sound.

If each voice is to have the ensemble sound, you probably need 3x as many violins in the orchestra as voices. Obviously if you want the solo sound, you only needs as many violins as voices. If your pieces are being performed, it's just as important to consider skill level of the musicians as it is to think about the number of players.

At the low end of the spectrum, you've got a community orchestra who welcomes anyone. There are a wide range of skill levels this kind of group. The less skilled players may not have the abilities or confidence to play a part significantly different from their group leaders.

So if you have 20 violins in a community orchestra a generous estimate , it may be that 4 of them can handle anything you throw at them, 10 of them are good enough if they've got the section leader to help them out on the tricky bits, and the last 6 struggle to keep up on anything. In a group like that, you can easily handle two distinct parts with occasional further divisions, but going further means you're exposing the group's weaknesses too clearly.

On the other hand, if you've got a professional orchestra, you can assume that every violin player can hold their own, although some will be better than others. At this point, your music will be playable, but if you've got more than just violins playing, it will be hard for them to be heard over everyone else because you've split 20 violins into 6 parts, so there's not enough doubling for good volume.

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