My First Orchestra Album

Hearing a whole orchestra play is a bit like looking at an enormous colourful painting, full of amazing patterns. The instruments of the orchestra all make different sounds, and when they play together they can make you think and feel and imagine hundreds of different things!

There are four main groups of orchestral instruments. At the front there are the string instruments: the deep-voiced double basses (taller than the people who play them!), the cellos, the violas and the violins, which sound the highest notes. They each have four strings which are played with a horse-hair bow.

Behind them sit the wind players, who blow into their instruments – gently for quiet notes and harder for loud notes. The biggest instrument, with the lowest sound, is the bassoon, followed by the clarinet, oboe, flute and the tiny piccolo, which can make such a high bright sound it can be heard over the whole orchestra.

The brass section can get very loud, so that’s why it is positioned further back. Brass players blow into their instruments too: if you can blow raspberries you would probably be an excellent trumpeter! The tuba is the largest, then come the trombones, horns and trumpets, all made of beautiful shiny metal.

Right at the back are the percussionists, playing drums, timpani, cymbals, triangles and xylophones – in fact anything that can be struck!

The conductor stands at the front, facing the orchestra and making sure that everyone plays the right thing at the right time.

Naxos Global Distribution Ltd :

Naxos Records is the world’s leading classical music label as measured by the number of new recordings it releases and the depth and breadth of its catalogue. Naxos was founded in 1987 by Klaus Heymann, a German-born entrepreneur based in Hong Kong. Under his continuing stewardship, Naxos has developed from being known primarily as a budget label focusing on standard repertoire into a global music group comprising a raft of downloading and streaming platforms, a significant catalogue of multimedia products, a vast international logistics network, a recording engineering arm, a publications division, and a licensing department.

Music Track and Information:

TR 1 ( 00:04:01 ) Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro), K. 492: Overture

Composer: Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus | Performer: Capella Istropolitana; Wordsworth, Barry

TR 2 ( 00:05:49 ) Symphony No. 3 in F Major, Op. 90: III. Poco allegretto

Composer: Brahms, Johannes | Performer: London Philharmonic Orchestra; Alsop, Marin

TR 3 ( 00:10:46 ) Scheherazade, Op. 35: I. The Sea and Sinbad's Ship

Composer: Rimsky-Korsakov, Nikolay Andreyevich | Performer: Seattle Symphony Orchestra; Schwarz, Gerard; Larionoff, Maria

TR 4 ( 00:04:04 )

Symphony No. 6 in D Major, Hob.I:6, "Le matin": III. Menuet

Composer: Haydn, Franz Joseph | Performer: Northern Chamber Orchestra; Ward, Nicholas

TR 5 ( 00:03:10 )

L'arlésienne Suite No. 1: II. Menuet

Composer: Bizet, Georges | Performer: Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra; Bramall, Anthony

TR 6 ( 00:03:18 ) Children's Corner: IV. The Snow is Dancing (arr. A. Caplet for orchestra)

Composer: Debussy, Claude | Performer: Lyon National Orchestra; Märkl, Jun

TR 7 ( 00:06:16 ) Khovanshchina, Act IV: Dance of the Persian Slaves

Composer: Mussorgsky, Modest Petrovich | Performer: Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra; Jean, Kenneth

TR 8 ( 00:02:45 ) Lieutenant Kijé Suite, Op. 60: III. Kijé's Wedding

Composer: Prokofiev, Sergey | Performer: Lille National Orchestra; Casadesus, Jean-Claude

TR 9 ( 00:05:57 ) Symphony No. 3 in E-Flat Major, Op. 55, "Eroica": III. Scherzo: Allegro vivace

Composer: Beethoven, Ludwig van | Performer: Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra; Halász, Michael

TR 10 ( 00:05:22 ) Orphée aux enfers (Orpheus in the Underworld), Act II: Can-Can

Composer: Offenbach, Jacques | Performer: Slovak State Philharmonic Orchestra, Košice; Wildner, Johannes

TR 11 ( 00:04:54 ) Prodaná nevesta (The Bartered Bride), Act I: Polka

Composer: Smetana, Bedřich | Performer: Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra; Wordsworth, Barry

TR 12 ( 00:01:50 ) The Nutcracker Suite, Op. 71a: II. Danses caractéristiques: Dance of the Sugar-Plum Fairy

Composer: Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Il'yich | Performer: Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra; Halász, Michael

TR 13 ( 00:05:25 ) Die Walküre, Act III: Ride of the Valkyries

Composer: Wagner, Richard | Performer: Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra; Mund, Uwe