Ensemble etiquette

Don't be a selfish musician.

Classical musicians are generally a sensitive lot and indeed a lot of music is about and appeals to the higher nature of man. This make it all the more sad when selfish playing destroys the music for audience and musicians.

Toscanini reportedly once said the secret of his success was that you could hear the tune throughout.

This is obvious as the melody(or rhythmic cell or whatever the piece is based on) generally carries the bulk of the development.

In order for the tune to be audible those not playing the tune should play softer and moderate their tone quality and pitch to accommodate the tune and the orchestration. Those with the tune should project it by shaping the melody in a convincing way.

It helps if players come to the first rehearsal with a good idea of the piece and it's thematic content and have enough technical mastery of their instrument so that 100% of their attention is not on what note to play and that they have the ability to moderate their volume.

Not every whole note needs to be sustained at full volume and if you come down a bit it will give you some room to shape the line.

Take the time to observe the other instruments and accommodate their tricky areas. I don't expect a horn player hanging on to some perilous high note to tune to me. The bottom notes on an oboe are hard to play softly and if the the pitch is high they might not come out at all, harmonics on the strings will be flat etc..

Good ensemble requires cooperation. Just as we might hold the door open for someone or let them into traffic we should move out of the way of the solo line.

Orchestral Etiquette -a list