Toward the Revival of the Classical Orchestra

Author(s): Neal Zaslaw

Source: Proceedings of the Royal Musical Association, Vol. 103 (1976 - 1977), pp. 158-187
Published by: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. on behalf of the Royal Musical Association
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 TowardtheRevivaloftheClassicalOrchestra
NEAL ZASLAW

WHATLOVERofeighteenth-century music,hearingBurney'scharacterisation
oftheMannheimorchestraas '. .. an armyofgenerals,equally fitto plan a
battle,as to fightit', or upon readingSchubart'sdescriptionof thatgroup,
Itsforteis like thunder,itscrescendolikea greatwaterfall,itsdiminuendothe splashingof
a crystallineriverdisappearingintothedistance,itspianoa breathofspring...,1

has not been filledwithcuriosityto hear such an ensemble?Recentlya few

performing groupshavebeguntotrytosatisfy We are reminded
thatcuriosity.'
of the pioneeringnatureof such undertakings by recallingthata respected
musicdictionarydefines'PerformancePractice' as 'the studyof how early
music,fromtheMiddle Agesto Bach, was performed and themanyproblems
connectedwithattemptsto restoreitsoriginalsoundin modernperformance.
... In the period afterBach the problemsof performance practicelargely
disappear, owing to the more specificdirectionsof composersfor clearly
indicating their intentions'.3No informedmusician should nowadays
accept thisassertionwithregardto the musicofGluck,Boccherini,Haydn,
Mozart, Beethoven,Clementi,Schubert,et al., forwe have learned how
different were the performingconditionsat the end of the eighteenthand
beginningofthenineteenth centuriesfromthoseofourown day,and thatthe
notion of an unbrokentraditionof performancepractice, which many
musiciansonce believedin,was simplya myth.

I INSTRUMENTSAND PLAYING TECHNIQUES

Headway has been made in therevivalofthefortepiano and oforchestral
instrumentsbuiltto old, pre-industrial But foreveryperform-
specifications.
ance ofbeautyand insight,twoare heardwhichsetbackthecause ofhistoric-
ally authenticperformance. The fortepiano,forinstance,cannotbe played

Charles Burney,The PresentStateof Music in Germnuy, d

t.etherlands and UnitedProvinces
(London, 1773), i, 93; ChristianFriedrichDaniel Schubart,Ideexnu einerAesthetik der
Tonkunst (Vienna, 18o6), 130. The author wishes to thank his colleagues, Bojan Bujid,
PierluigiPetrobelli,StanleySadie, andJamesWebster,whoreadan early versionof thispaper
and made helpfulsuggestions.
' EspeciallytheCollegiumAureumin Germanyand theAcademyofAncientMusic in London.
An internationalconferenceto discussthe establishment of anothersuch ensemblewas con-
venedin November1976at Ronceysurl'Ignon in Burgundyand October1977in Parisunder
theauspicesoftheFondationpourI'artet la recherche.
'Willi Apel, HarvardDictionary of Music, 2nd edn. (Cambridge, Mass., 1969), article
'Performancepractice',658-59. Cf. H. C. Robbins Landon's remarkthat '... no one will
want to performHaydn's musicwithnaturaltrumpetsand ancientwoodwindinstruments
whenour moderncounterparts are in mostcases so farsuperiorin everyway' ( TheSymphonies
Haydn(London, 1955), ito).
of7Joseph

158

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TOWARD THE REVIVAL OF THE CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA 159

witha Steinway,Bechstein,orBisendorfertechnique,norevenwitha harpsi-

chordtechnique;it has a techniqueof its own, theacquisitionof whichre-
quiresan apprenticeship as arduousas thatdemandedbyanyotherinstru-
ment.In addition,manymuseuminstruments willneveragainsoundthe
waythey did twocenturies ago and had be
better usedas modelsforbuilders
of modernreplicasthan restored.& These cautionsapply to all of the
instruments.4
The organological problemwhichhas been leastsatisfactorily resolved
fromboththeoretical and practicalpointsofviewconcerns bows.Because
historicalbowsare sometimes withoutmakers'marks,seldomdated,and
neverlabelledas to whichinstrument theywereintended for,it has proven
toidentify
difficult properly theseveralbow-typesinuseduringtheClassical
era in orderthatreplicascan be made,playersfamiliarised withtheiruse,
and the repertory associatedwitheach identified. Accordingto Galeazzi
eachschoolofviolinplaying had itsownform ofbowandthebestorchestras
werethosein whichall of theviolinists weretrainedin thesameschool.6
Thisnotionis elaborated uponina reviewofa concert in 181o bystudentsof
theParisConservatory :
Manyconcerts, announced withmagniloquence andveryexpensively,arenotequaltothose
givenat the Conservatory underthemodesttitle'Students'Exercises'. The perfection
of thesymphonic performances [there]surpassesthatwhichformerly distinguishedthe
Concerts C/Ury.Everyone is in agreement on thispoint,butnoonehasyetrelateditstrue
cause:tocallattention toitisessential,becauseitdeterminesthegoodorbad organisation
ofan orchestra.The violinists, andcellists
violists, whopreviously madeup thesymphony
orchestrawere,separately, from verygoodteachers, buteachoneofthese[teachers] hada
schoolofbowing.SomehadJarnovick's,
different othersTartins,anda verysmallnumber
Thisresulted
Viotti's. in entirelydifferentmanners ofstrikingthestring,
fromwhichthe
inevitable absenceof highfinish and ofperfect ensemble in performance.Today,these
disadvantages no longerexist:eachoftheprincipal teachersat theConservatoire-Messrs
Rode,Kreutzer,and Baillot-haswithout doubta schoolofbowing peculiarto himself,
but
on thewholethesethreemanners verymuchapproximate thatofthegreatmaster ofthem
all,thefamousViotti.The pupilsofthethreeclassesall havea broadandenergetic manner
ofplaying;thisresultsinsuchunity ofperformance inthesymphonies thatfrom a distance
onewouldbelievethatthere wasonlyoneviolinoneachpart.

PERFORMANCE
II INTERPRETATIVE
of Classicalmusicbearingthestrong
We are accustomedto performances
ofa Szell,a Beecham,a Walter,etc. But,outside
personalinterpretation
thelimitedrealmofFrenchoperaandFrenchcourtmusic,batonconducting
4 A discussionofpreservation
vs. restoration and ofold instruments
withmuseuminstruments,
vs. replicasin performance, is foundin theHaydn-Conference
Report, Workshop6, ed. JensPeter
Larsen,JamesWebster,and Howard Serwer(in thepress).
s FrancescoGaleazzi, Elementi di musica,
teorico-practici conansaggiosupral'artedi suonare
it violino,
2 vols. (Rome, 1791-96), i, 76-7, 211. Accordingto Galeazzi, '...le miglioriorchestredel
Mondo, al presente[l,son quelle di Parma, Torino, Milano, e Man[n]heim nel Palatinato
inferiore'(i, 211 n).
s Les Tablettes dePolymnie
(April 181o), 3-4, signedA. M.

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i6o TOWARD OFTHECLASSICAL
THEREVIVAL ORCHESTRA
was hardlyknownduringtheClassicera. Pictures fromthatera depicting
a manwavinga rolled-up scrollofmusic-paper (usuallyin thechoirloftofa
church)document thesurvivalof theRenaissance practiceofbeatingthe
and are notevidenceofearlyinstances
tactus, ofinterpretative conducting.
Therewereleaders,tobe sure,seatedat theheadofthefirst violinsandat a
keyboard instrument7or veryoccasionallyelsewhere in theorchestra. This
system ofleadingan orchestra was behindMozart'simpassioned outburst
to hisfather:'I willno longerbe a fiddler.I wantto conductat thekey-
board... .'" As thekeyboard continuo declinedinimportance, theviolinist-
conductors cameintofullcontroloftheorchestras.
Therewereat leastthreereasonswhya modern-style conductor wasnot
needed:theensembles wereusuallysmaller;9themusicians wererequired
to playonlythemusicoftheirown time(and notthatofseveraldifferent
eras);thatmusicwaslargely baseduponthesteady pulsesofdanceandmarch,
andwasusuallyofa basically simple texture
and rhythm.

III PLACEMENT: OPERA ORCHESTRAS

Italianoperaorchestrasemployed twoharpsichords, onefortheconcertino
(at which sat themaestro)and one for theripieno whichsat,often,a
(at
student Each wassurrounded
orapprentice).10 byitsowngroupoffrom one
tofourcellos,basses,and bassoons.The hornsoftenstoodbehindtheripieno
continuo playerswithbellsraised.A longmusicdeskranparalleltothefront
ofthestage,and rangedalongthis--half facingtheaudienceand halfthe
singers-were theviolinists,
violists, and oboists.It is thisset-up,
flautists,
but witha singleharpsichord, whichappearsin a paintingpurporting to

'And hence styledby one writerthe 'dual controlsystem'(Adam Carse, The Orchestra in the
XVlllthCentuy(Cambridge,194o),88ff.).For theperformance ofmotets, masses,and oratorios,
the practiceof beatingthe tactuswitha rolled scrollof musicremainedin use throughout
the18thcentury.See, forexample,thepictureofFranzXaverRichterleadinga performance in
Strasburgcathedralin 1785 (reproducedin ErnstBUicken, Die MusikdesRokkoks wadderKlassik
(Potsdam,1927),9o; GeorgeKinsky,A History ofMusicinPictures (London, 1930), 285; and
Die MusikinGeschichte (ed. F. Blume),xi,cols.455-6); and theaccountsofMozart
undGegenwart
leadingan oratorioby C. P. E. Bach 1788in and Handel's Messiah in 1789 (0. E. Deutsch,
Mozart: A Documentary (London, 1965), 310, 335). For thisactivityLeopold and
Biography
WolfgangMozart used the verbtatiereninsteadof the usual dirigierew (Bauer, Deutsch,Eibl
(eds.), Mozart: Brisfeand Aufzeickumnge (Cassel, 1962-75), i, 285, 286; iv, 192). Galeazzi
thevisualsignalsnecessaryin churchmusic.
(op. cit.,i, 218) also mentions
* Letterofi i September1778.Bauer,Deutschand Eibl,op.cit.,ii,473-
* The good ensembleat the Haydn-Salomonconcertsin Londonin 1791-3 was mentionedby
thecritics;theorchestranumberedabout 4o. When in 1795Haydn led an orchestraof more
than 6o for the Opera Concertsin London, however,the criticshintedpolitelythat the
ensemblehad been ragged(see H. C. Robbins Landon, Haydn:Chronicle and Works, iii: Haydn
inEnglandr791-1795,287 and 293-4).
s The
opera orchestrain London also used 2 harpsichordsfromat least 1728 (and probably
earlier)untiltheend of the 1781-2 season,afterwhichonlyone was employed(see Winton
Dean, 'A FrenchTraveller'sView ofHandel's Operas', Musit& Letters, Iv (1974), 172-8; and
'Opera Intelligence',PublicAdvertiser (London, 23 Nov 1781) as reportedin Leon Plantinga,
Clementi: His LifetandMusic(London, 1977), 37-8).

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TOWARD THE REVIVAL OF THE CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA 161

show Haydn's littleopera orchestraat Esterhiza.loaThe Dresden opera

orchestraunder Hasse (fig. I, top) was also on the Italian model,but by
the I774-96 period German orchestrasgenerallyused only one keyboard
instrument.Galeazzi tells us that the Dresden plan is excellentif one's
principalconcernis good ensemble.If, however,one has excellentplayers

~li~~~~~-~'"""""`"":"'-""""f
NMI;
VMS

........
NA?i

Fig. i. The placementof the theatreorchestrasof Dresdenand Turin as shownby Galeazzi,

op. cit.,plate iv. Galeazzi took the Dresden plan fromJean-JacquesRousseau,Dictionnaire de
musique (Paris,1768)whereitissaid torepresentthestateofaffairs
in 1754 (P. 354 and plateG).

KEY
DRESDEN: i firstharpsichord[J.A. Hasse]; 2 second harpsichord;3 violoncellos;4 contra-
basses;5 firstviolins;6 secondviolins,withbacks turnedtowardthestage; 7 oboes [also with
backstowardthestage];8 flutes[ditto];a violas[ditto];b bassoons;c huntinghorns;d a platform
on each side forthetrumpets and timpani.
TURIN: A the directorof the orchestra[Gaetano Pugnani],moreelevatedthan the others;
b firstviolins;c secondviolins;d oboes; e clarinets;fhuntinghorns;g violas; h bassoons;I first
violoncellos;L firstcontrabasses;mbasses,thatis,violoncellosand contrabasses;n otherhunting
horns;o timpanum;p trumpets; q first fortheballets;rharpsichords.
violinist

in dozensofbooks,mayhave nothingat all to do withHaydn and

10a This picture,reproduced
the Esterhiza orchestra.See LAszl6 Somfai,JosephHaydn:His Lifein Contemporary
Pictures
(London, 1969), 63 and 229.

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162 TOWARD THE REVIVAL OF THE CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA

who can be countedupon to followthe principalviolinistaccurately,then

the plan used by the Turin opera orchestra(whichwas, Galeazzi claims,
'withoutcontradictionthe best in Europe') is superior(fig.'I, bottom).
Galeazzi reasonsas follows:ifthe stringsare on one side and the windson
the other(as at Dresden),a properblend of the two will be heard onlyby
thosemembersoftheaudienceseatedin themiddleofthehall; bydistributing
bothstrings and windsacrosstheorchestra, a properblendwillbe heardfrom
any angle. Galeazzi makes it quite clear that,leavingaside the firstthree
performances ofan opera,which the composerled fromthefirst harpsichord,
by 179I theprimoviolino had fullcontrolof the performance, and thatboth
instrumentalistsand singersfollowedhissignals."1
In Frenchopera a wooden baton was used, althoughthefunctionof the
batteurde mesure(as he was called) was to set the tempoand keep the forces
together-notto 'interpret'the music.This 'timebeater'stoodat the front
edge of the stagewithhis back to boththe audienceand the orchestra,but
closeto thesingersand dancers.Fromthislocationhe was also able tofunction
as prompter.Near himwerethesingleharpsichordand themembersofthe
petitchoeur(usuallytwo violins,one flute,and fourto six cellos and double
basses). The orchestrasat in concentricsemicircles facingthe 'time-beater',
with theirbacks to the audience (fig.2). In the solo and small-ensemble

,OZ
A3
~L
~$ BP~~--
BC~s:~~~~:$e~Pg
~i~A
_4Ft
Fig. 2. Detail ofa penand inkand watercolour
drawingbyFrancisMetoyenofa 'Plan de Musique
du Roy au GrandeThAtre de Versailles'showingthe name and instrument ofeach orchestra
memberas of I773 (Bibliothequede Versailles).

Galeazzi, op.cit.,i, 213-27. Galeazzi does,however,warnthatin recitative,

or whentheaction
n causes thesingerto turnhis back to theorchestrapit,theprimoviolino mustfollowthesinger,
and also sometimesin concertsas well. For a summaryof Galeazzi's instructions to theprimo
violino
differing fromthatgivenin thisarticle,see MiltonSutter,'FrancescoGaleazzi on the
Duties of theLeader or Concertmaster',The Consort, xxxii (1976), 185-92. Galeazzi's plan
fortheTurinopera orchestrais quitesimilarto a plan of 1786fortheNaples opera orchestra
givenin MGG, x, col. 178. This Naples plan is takenfromUlisse Prota-Giurleo,La grande
delR. Teatro
orchestra SanCarlonelSettecento(da documenti
inediti)(Naples,1927),49.

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TOWARD THE REVIVAL OF THE CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA 163
numbersthebatteur demesuremadepatternsin theair,as in modernconducting.
For the large-scalechoral and dance numbers(whichwere largelyabsent
fromItalian opera duringtheperiod), he beat his stickon his musicdesk.12
This noise aroused the scornof many foreignvisitorsto the Paris Opera.
But even in Italy, as we learn fromGaleazzi, ifthe ensemblebecame suffi-
cientlyshakyduringa performance, theprimoviolino was expectedto stamp
hisfeet;and thereexistsevidencethatItalian harpsichordists wereoccasion-
allyforcedto pound on theirinstruments to bringtheirmusicianstogether.13
We have inheritedfromWagnerthenotionofburyingtheopera orchestra
beneaththestagein orderto permitthepowerand varietyofa largeensemble
whilerenderingthesingersaudible (althoughGr6tryhad alreadyproposed
the idea in the eighteenthcentury).14 It is therefore strikingto read the
following remarks of Meude-Monpas, knowledgeablemusicianwritingin
a
the 178os:15
I have notspokenof the construction
and the enclosureofan opera orchestrapit,because
knows-that
everyone thattheenclosure
itis necessary be ofa resonant
wood,suchas pine;
thatin additiontheorchestramustbe raisedin orderthatthesoundscan issuefortheasily;
thata certain
finally, distance bya separation
isnecessary-marked oftheorchestra
from
the
listenersin the pit-without which the closenessof the heavy,dull mass [of spectators]
reducesthe vibrationsof the sound,just as the slightestforeignbody which touchesany
instrument whatevermutesit appreciably,etc.

(Galeazzi warns,however,that,if the singersare to be properlyseen and

heard, the heads of the orchestramembersmustbe below the level of the
stage.)
By theend ofthe eighteenth century,thesingleharpsichordused by most
Germanopera orchestraswas placed, accordingto Koch, in thecentreofthe
orchestrawiththestringson one side and thewindson theother,or roughly
theplan used at Dresdenhalfa centuryearlierminusthesecondharpsichord.

IV PLACEMENT: CHURCH ORCHESTRAS

Koch tells us that good placementis impossiblein churchif the organ
is at thefrontofthe choirloft.In any case, thesingersshouldbe groupedat
the frontand the principalviolinistand principalcello and bass players
broughtas close to the organistas possible." Galeazzi decriesthe practice
12 Francois
Lesure,L'opdra (Geneva,1972), plates2-6;JacquesChailley,
classiquefranfais 40,ooo
YearsofMusic(NewYork,1964),platexxxv;J. J.O. de Meude-Monpas, demusique
Dictionnaire
article
(Paris,1787), de
'Baton mesure';Encyclopidie mithodique, i
Musique,(Paris,I791),article
'Batondemesure', I62.
13 Galeazzi,op.cit.,i, 58; British Printsand
Museum, Drawings, 197.d.4.,no. [166] (Leone
Ghezzi);JournaldeMusique (Paris,June1770), I4-17; de Rochemont, dunpatriote
Reflexions
sur'fop ctsurP'opira
rafranois p. 54-5n(Lausanne,1754).TheConcert
italien, spirituel
gaveup
itsnoisy
Frenchbatoninfavour oftheItaliansystem in1762(seeLeMercure deFrance,
Sept1762,
177-80,and Oct 1762, 182-4).
14Grtry, (Paris,1796),iii,32.
Mimnoires
1" Meude-Monpas, op.cit.,article'Orchestre'.
1 Heinrich Koch,Musikalisches Lexikon...(Frankfurt, 1802), article
'Stellung',
cols.1435-8.

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164 TOWARD THE REVIVAL OF THE CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA

thencommonin Italianchurches ofdividing themusicians intotwogroups

andplacingthemat oppositesidesofthechurch. Thegreatdistance between
thegroupsoftenleadstopoorensemble, he says.The bestarrangement is to
bringthemusicians as nearas possible
together tothemainaltarandarrange
themon a seriesofthreeorfourraisedsteps,in amphitheatre fashion.17

V PLACEMENT: CONCERT ORCHESTRAS

Many early concert orchestras(excluding the keyboard players and
stoodwhileperforming.
cellists) Asidefrom isnoreasontosuppose
that,there
thatthe concertorchestrasobservedconventionsdifferent fromthoseof the
opera orchestras,although the larger space allotted to the orchestrain
concert rooms oftenresultedin a more convenientarrangementof the
playersand in theaugmentationoftheirnumbers.Meude-Monpasgivesthe
advice:18
following
The orchestra'splacementcounts formuch, and one mustobservethe followingrules,
namely:putthesecondviolinsoppositeand notalongsidethefirsts;place thebassesas near
as possibleto the firstviolins,forin harmonythe bass is theessentialpart of the chords;
finally,bringtogetherthe wind instruments-suchas the oboes, flutes,horns,etc.-and
finishit offwiththe violas.

Galeazzistatesthatthe mostfavourable arrangement in a concertroom

from a strictly
acousticalpointofviewwouldbe tohavetheorchestra in the
centreoftheroom,butthatforvisualreasonstheorchestra mustbe placed
alonga longwall (assuming a rectangular
hall).The first
and secondviolins
shouldbe in tworowsfacingone another, and theprincipalcellistand bass
playerplacedoneither sideoftheharpsichordist.Theweakest players should
be nearthecontinuoas theyneedthemostguidance.The violasare best
placednearthesecondviolinswithwhom,Galeazzisays,theymustoften
playin thirds whiletheoboesshouldbe nearthefirst
and sixths, violinswith
whomtheyoften double.Thebrassshouldbeplacednotfarfrom theprincipal
violinist.
As thisdispositionbringstogether theprincipalfirstand second
the
violinists, principal cellistand bassplayerand theharpsichordist, good
ensemble isfacilitated.1"
Koch agreeswithGaleazzi thatgood placement mustdeal withboth
thevisualand theacoustical. Whentherearesingers, theyshouldbe placed
at thefront--otherwisethestrings shouldoccupythatposition---so thatthe
principalpartsare notobscured.For thesakeofgoodensemble, theper-
formers of theseprincipalpartsmustbe groupedcloselytogether. Care
mustbe takenthatweakerinstruments are placedfurther forward than
strongeronesand thatthetwosortsarenevernearoneanother.(Kochgives
17Galeazzi,
op. dit.,
216-20o.
's Meude-Monpas, The term'bass' (basse,BaB, basso)is usedby
op.cit.,article'Orchestre'.
Meude-Monpas, Kochand Galeazzitomean'player(s)ofthebass-line',
andnot'contrabass
viol'.
19Galeazzi,op.cit.,216.

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TOWARD THE REVIVAL OF THE CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA 165

flutesand trumpets as an example.)The leaderofthesingersand theleader

of the orchestramustbe visibleto each memberof his group,and the two
leadersmustbe visibleto each other.The orchestrashouldbe on a raised
platform, which,however,shouldnotbe too wide and shallow.In thecentre
of the platformshould be placed the principalperformers of the bass-line,
withthe leadersof the firstand secondviolinson eitherside of them.The
remainderoftheviolinsshouldbe fannedout behindtheirleaders,forming a
semicirclealong the frontof the platform.Singersperforming arias and
instrumentalistsperforming concertosstand in the centreof thissemicircle
wheretheycan easilylead.20
Haydn introducedan amphitheatrearrangementto London for his
concertsof 1791-3 (fig.3). This plan was, in one formor another,used
forLondon orchestral concertsthroughout muchofthenineteenth century.21

V .
|a

s N

HAYDN
C H.O. R U S S I N G E R S

V0CAL S0L0 1STS

oftheamphitheatre
Fig. 3. Hypotheticalreconstruction placementused at theHaydn-Salomon
concertsin London, 1791-3,based on sourceslistedin note21.
20 Koch, op.cit.,article'Stellung',cols. 1435-8.
21 The hypothetical reconstruction oftheplan ofHaydn'sLondonorchestra(fig.3) is based upon
a descriptionby CharlottePapendiek(CourtandPrivate LifeintheTimeofQueenCharlotte:being
theJournalsofMrs. Papendiek, Assistant KeeperoftheWardrobe andReadertoHer Majesty.Edited
byherGrand-Daughter, Mrs. Vernon DelvesBroughton,ii (London, 1887), 295) and on twobriefer
descriptionspublishedin the Berliner Musikzeitung (18 March and 6 July 1793)- See also
Landon, Haydnin London,52-3; and C. F. Pohl, JosephHaydn,iii (Leipzig, 1927), '0-I i.

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166 TOWARD THE REVIVAL OF THE CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA

Some key featuresof the plans used by Koch and Haydn are confirmed
by a diagram of a concertorchestrapublishedin Leipzig in 1782, which
shows the central location of the directorat the harpsichordand of the
concertmaster, the divisionbetweenfirstand secondviolins,the placement
of the principal melodic parts (voices and violins) forward,the weaker
instruments (flutes,violas) forward,thestrongerones (brass,timpani)to the
rear,and thewide separationbetweenflutesand trumpets."
From the above discussion,and fromthe iconographicalevidence,bwe
learn that althoughtherewere no standardorchestralplacements,certain
principleswerewidelyrecommended forconcertorchestras.These were: (I)
boththevisualand theacousticalmustbe takenintoaccount; (2) theprincipal
carriersofthemelodymustbe placed forward;(3) theleadersofthesections
and the continuoplayersmustbe centrallylocated,near one anotherand
visibleto the restof the ensemble; (4) the cellos,double basses,bassoons,
and keyboardcontinuowereconsidereda singlesection-the 'bass' section-
and were usually grouped together(and thus Haydn's arrangementin
Londoncan be seenas breakingwiththebassocontinuotradition, despitethe
lingeringkeyboard instrument); (5) standardisationbeyond thatimplied by
points1-4 was consideredundesirablebecause each hall,each repertory, and
each orchestrarequiresitsownarrangement.

VI CONCERT ROOMS

A hall which has the proportions,acoustics,and ambience of a good

eighteenth-century concertroom means a hall whichby modernstandards
is small,wherethe playersneverneed forcetheirinstruments to get a full
effect.(Needless to say, small halls and small opera housesare mandatory
in any attemptto revivea properstyleofsingingas well.) For example,the
HanoverSquare Rooms-where theBach-Abel concertswereheld between
1775and 1782, and theHaydn-SalomonconcertsbetweenI79I and I794-
measured79' x 32'. Duringthe 1795 season the Haydn-Salomonconcerts
playedin theexceptionallylargeconcertroomof theKing's Theatrewhich
was97' x 48'. The Bach-Abelconcertshad previously beenheldin Hickford's
GreatRoom,whichwas 50' x 30'. The HolywellMusic Room in Oxfordwas
(and is) 65' x 32'. The Salle des Cent Suissesat the Tuilleries,wherethe
Concertspirituelwas held between1725 and I784, was of comparablesize:
59k' x 521'. The concertroomwhichwas opened in Montpellierin 1785
was 59' x 36'. The celebratedhall oftheLeipzigGewandhaus,inaugurated

22The zur Praktischen

Musik..., 2nd
Leipzig chartis foundin JohannSamuel Petri,Anleitung
edn. (Leipzig, 1782), I88.

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TOWARD THE REVIVAL OF THE CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA 167

in 1781, was o06' x 4o'.23

Accordingto these figures,the concertrooms of the 178os and 790os
averagedaround 2,800 square feet,an area whichincludedboth musicians
and audience. Surprisingnumbersof people werecrowdedinto thosesmall
halls.For instance,theHanoverSquare Rooms had beenintendedto accom-
modate an audience of 8oo, but it is reported that on 3 May I792 some i,500
managedto crowdin to hear Haydn's benefitconcert.24

VII STANDARDS
Present-daymusicianswho feel that theirworksuffers frominadequate
rehearsaltimemay be surprisedto learn thatconcerts(unlikeopera) could
usuallycount on only one rehearsal.Two constituteda luxury,and none
was not at all unheardof." Furthermore, in the absenceof a strong-willed
maestro,disciplinecould be lax. An accountfromI785-6, while perhapsan
extremeexample, reportedproblemswhich were surelynot unique to the
city of Lyons: the leader had neithergreat intelligencenor an accurate
styleofperformance;amongthesecondviolinsone had no toneand another
was incapable of improvement due to 'nonchalanceand littleintelligence';
the firstoboist,who was also the firstflautist,'took it upon himselfto be
absentfortheovertureand oftenfortheentr'actes';threeplayers,including
theprincipalcellist,neverattendedrehearsals,and thecellistattendedonly
performances ofoperas and majorballets; thefirstbassoonistappeared only
when he liked his part, oftenstayingaway fora week at a time,and the
second bassoonistfollowedhis lead; and some membersof the orchestra
werein thehabitofleavingaftertheoverturein orderto givelessonsto their
pupils.This descriptionof the Lyonsorchestrawas not a satire,but a sober
bureaucraticreportwrittenat the requestof the sponsoringorganisation's
board ofdirectors."It providesus witha glimpseofone end ofa continuum
of Classicalorchestrastheotherend ofwhichis represented by Mannheim's
'armyofgenerals'.(But even at Mannheim,Burneycomplained,thewinds
playedout oftune.) The majorityofperformances oftheperiodundoubtedly
fellsomewherebetweentheextremes ofLyonsand Mannheim.

23 The
figures usuallygivenfortheHanoverSquare Roomsare greaterthanthosegivenhereand
apparentlyrepresenta laterenlargement and renovation;our figures appeared in theGeneral
Evening Postfor25 February1794,as reportedby Landon, HaydninLondon, 29; JohnH. Mee,
TheOldestMusicRoominEurope(London, Igi ), 4; ConstantPierre,Histoire duConcertspirituel
1725-1790 (Paris, 1975), 69; HeinrichW. Schwab, Konzert:Ofentliche oom
Musikdarbietung
17. bis Ig. Jahrhundert(Musikgeschichtein Bildern,iv/2: Leipzig, 1971), 66; AlfredD6rffel,
Geschichte der Gewandhausconcerte zu Leipzig... Festschrift
zur hundertjahrigen Jubelfeierder
Einweihung imGewandhause
desConcertsaales zu Leipzig(Leipzig, 884), 251-2.
u Landon,HaydninLondon, 16I.
*2On thelack ofrehearsalssee,
e.g.,Mozart'sletterto hisfather,3 July1778; TheAutobiography of
KarlvonDittersdorf (London, I896), 48-52; Landon,HaydninLondon, 299; etc.
U
Leon Vallas, Unsidledemusique etdethietre
d Lyon1688-1789(Lyons,1932), 432.

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168 TOWARD THE REVIVAL OF THE CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA

VIII REPERTORY
Nothingcould be moremistakenthan to supposethatbecause orchestral
musicwas sometimesperformed withtinystringsectionsand because concert
roomswere small,no distinctionexistedin the mindsof musiciansbetween
chamberand symphonicmusicor that the two repertories were considered
The distinctions
interchangeable. betweenthechurch,thechamber,and the
theatrestyleswerewellunderstood.
Meude-Monpas himself
expressed as
follows
onthissubject:27
In general,
thegenreofthesymphoriy is suitedtoplaceswhere grandeffects
appearindis-
asattheopera... orinchurches
pensable, .... Butinthechamber itisa monstrous
species,
[asifoneweretosee]thepaintings
ofthedomeoftheEglise desInvalides
upclose.

Concerning two basic principles

repertory, may be stated.First,pro-
grammes werenot filledwitha limitedrepertoryofold piecesby a tiny
of'greatmasters'
handful playedoverandover.Thatsituation
didnotdevelop
untilwellintothenineteenthcentury.URather,varietyand noveltywere
theorderoftheday. Second,programmes ofexclusively
orchestralmusic
wererare.More characteristic
was a mixture of instrumental
and vocal
music--ofsolomusic,chambermusic,and orchestraland choralmusic.A
fewprogrammes fromtheperiodmayservetoillustrate
thesepoints:"

21 February
1774
OxfordMusickRoom
Overture[symphony]-New Myslivedek
Song:'Ceaseyourtragicmeasures' J. C. Bach
Trio Stamitz
Song:'Donecponam' Leo
Symphony Holtzbauer
Overture-New Ditters
vonDittersdorf
Song:'Whilst
withlonesome
steps' Jomelli
Toeschi
Song:'Eja mater' Pergolesi
Symphony with'clarionets' Gossec

" Meude-Monpas, op.cit.,article'Symphonie'.

2 Thisremark
appliesto ItalyandtheGerman-speaking lands.In thesecondhalfoftheI8th
century, however, Londonconcert lifehad itsclassicsin Handel,Corelli,and Geminiani,
whileupuntil1790ParishaditsinLully,Rameau,andde Lalande.
" Mee,op. cit.,38; D6rffel, op.cit.,facsimile
insert; Bauer,Deutsch, andEibl,op.cit.,iii,261-2,
andvi,137(NB: hereandin Deutsch, op.cit.,213, theSymphonie concertanteis incorrectly
glossedas thethirdmovement onlyofK. 320); Pierre, op.cit.,322; H. C. RobbinsLandon,
'AusdenSpuren JosephHaydns',Osterreichische MusikZeitschrikn, I (Nov 1976)579-81
xixxi/s
(alsoin Landon,Haydn inLondon, 75-6).

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TOWARD THE REVIVAL OF THE CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA 169
25 November 1781
Leipzig GewandhausOrchestraInauguralConcert
Symphony JosephSchmitt
Hymn:'Andie Musik' J.Fr.Reichardt
ViolinConcerto Berger
Quartet ?

Symphony J.C. Bach

Aria:'S6 cheundolortiranno' Sacchini
Symphony E. W. Wolff

23 March1783
Mozart'sBenefitConcert Vienna
in theBurgtheater,
'Haffner' Symphony, K. 385,3 movements
'Se il padreperdei'from K. 366,no. I i
Idomeneo,
PianoConcerto in C major,K. 415(378b)
'Misera,doveson!-Ah! nonson'io cheparlo',K. 369
Symphonie concertante,K 32o,movements 3 and4
PianoConcerto inD major,K. 175and382.
'Parto,m'affretto'fromLucioSilla,K. 135,no. 16
Shortfugueforfortepiano solo(improvised)
Variations on 'Salvetu,Domine',pianosolo,K. 398(416e)
Variations on'Unserdummer P6belmeint',pianosolo,K. 455-
'Mia speranzaadorata!-Ahnonsai qual pena',K. 416
'Haffner' Symphony, K. 385,finale

6 April1783
The Concert
spirituel Paris
at theTuilleries,
Symphony Haydn
Airitalien Rispoli
ClarinetConcerto Soler
ClarinetConcerto Deshayes
Sceneitalien Ottani
CelloConcerto Br6val
La Sortied'Egypte(oratorio) H.Jos.Rigel
Scene italien Piccini
ViolinConcerto Viotti
Rondo Rispoli
16May 791
Haydn's BenefitConcertin theHanoverSquare Rooms,London
New Grand Overture[symphony] Haydn
Aria: 'Infelicech'io sono!' Cimarosa
Concertantefor2 bassethorns ?
Newaria: 'Cara dehtornainpace' Haydn
ViolinConcerto Giornovichi

NewGrandOverture [symphony] Haydn

Cantata:'Ah,comeil coremipalpita' Haydn
Concertante andpedalharp
forfortepiano ?Dussek
Duet:'Padresonteco--CaroPadre' Bianchi
Finale[ofthesymphony] Haydn

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170 TOWARDTHE REVIVALOF THE CLASSICAL
ORCHESTRA

IX PERSONNEL
Historical data for the make-up of an authentic Classical orchestra are
is not always easy. Table I
numerous,althoughtheirproperinterpretation
(see p. 177'), entitled 'The Size and Composition of Orchestras 1774-96', is a
compilation representing some 79 orchestras as recorded on i43 separate
occasions. This informationwas gathered from nineteenth-and twentieth-
century publications, checking against the authors' eighteenth-century
sourceswheneverpossible." Nine of the orchestrasappear to have had no
violists.
However, as wearedealingwitha periodinwhichvirtually all ofthe
and
manuscript printed scoresrequiredviolas,and as most violinplayers
can playtheviolaifcalledupontodo so,31thenumber ofviolinists
in such
caseshas beendistributed acrossthreecolumns:first violin,secondviolin,
and viola.A good exampleof thisphenomenon is thecourtorchestra at
Donaueschingen where the roster
orchestra's shows three or fourviolinists
andnoviolists, eventhough weknowthattheorchestra acquiredunpublished
symphonies byMozartandHaydn,all ofwhichhadviolaparts,"3*
Clarinets werestillsurprisinglyrareduringthisperiod;according to our
data, fewerthanhalfof theorchestras had clarinetplayers.It is in this
contextthatwe mustinterpret Mozart'swriting fromMannheimto his
fatherin Salzburg,'Ah,ifonlywehad clarinets too!You cannotimaginethe
gloriouseffectofa symphony withflutes,oboes,andclarinets.'32The trumpet
andtimpaniplayers areoftenshowninbrackets, at leastinpartbecausethey
werenotinfrequently on a different
payroll-that is,theywereforhistorical
reasonsassociated withthe'stable'rather thanwiththe'chapel'.Hencewhen
anenterprising eighteenth-centurywriter attempted toascertainthemember-
ship of the chapel at a given court,he was not always sentfigures forthe
trumpets and timpani. On theotherhand,sometimes he wassenttheentire
musical rosterofthe'stable'andwouldthendulyreport thata courtorchestra
had io or 12 trumpets.33

3 Thischartis an enlarged,
revisedversionofa handoutdistributed at a colloquium at the
HaydnConference-Festival
(Washington, D.C.; November 1975)in whichtheauthorwasa
Therecanbenodoubtthatfurther
participant. researchcouldhaveaddedyetother orchestras
havealteredthefindings
thatdoingso wouldsubstantially
tothischart,butitseemsunlikely
ofthisstudy.
Themassiveoratorio
performances,suchas theHandelcentennial inWestminster
Abbeyin1785andHiller'sperformancesofMessiahinLeipzig, andBreslau
Berlin inthefollow-
ingyearshavebeenexcludedfromourdata as beingsi generis and essentially outsidethe
day-to-dayorchestralpracticesof the period.
in addition
31 Furthermore, tothe specific sense
senseoftheterm'violin',therewasthegeneric
'theviolinfamily'
meaning as in Lesvingt-quatre duRoi.Thisusagewasalsocurrent
iolons in
e.g.,thetitlepageofT. A. Arne'sEightOvertures
England, in8 Parts,
FourforViolins, or
Hoboys,
German FlutesandFourfor Violins,
French & Harpsicord
Horns,& c. witha BassfortheVioloncello
(London: J. Walsh, 1750-51). Hence, the cello was also knownin Germanyas the Bassgeige
and in Franceas thebassedeviolon.
31AFriedrich
Schnapp, 'Neue Mozart-Fundein Donaueschingen',NeuesMozart-Jahrbuch (1942),
211-23.
3 Letter of December
3 i778.
" This point is discussedby Christoph-HellmutMahling, 'Mozart und die Orchesterpraxis
seinerZeit', Mozart-Jahrbuch
(1967), 229-43.

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 TABLE I

THE SIZE AND COMPOSITION OF ORCHESTRAS 1774-1796

notesandbibliography)
(seepp. 186-7 forexplanatory

> .0 o 0u .0
AMSTERDAM (y) . , "
1792f -5- 2 3 2 2 2 2
ANSBACH (w)
I782 DHRjk -11-12- 3 5 2 2 3 2-3 3 4
I789j 8 8 2 4 2 2 4 2 2 2
1796h 4 4 2 2 2 I1 2-1 2
AU SBURG (w)
4 4 2 2 3 2 2 2
1787j
BAMBERG (w)
5 5 2 2 2 2 1 2
1781DHjk
BENTHEIM (w)
1783DHUjk 3-4 3 2 2 0-I ? 1-2 2 ? 1
0-1
1789U 5-6 3-4 4 2 2-6 2 1-2 0-3 1-2 2 2
I
1790o 5 5 4 2 2-3 2 2 6 2 I
BERLIN (w)
1778H 6 6 4 4 3 4 4 2 2 (2) (i)

I782 HQjk 6 7 4 4 3 4 3 4 2 (2)

(i)
1783 6 6 4 5 3 4 3 4 (2) (2) (I)
QR
1786QR 10 10 7 8 4 4 5 2 5 (2) (2) (')
o
1o 1o 6 8 2 4 2 4 4 2 I
1787DHk 4

1789R o o10 4 6 4 5 4. 2 5 (4) (2) (I)

1792j II 11 7 8 4 4 5 2 5 5 (2)
(I)
BERLIN (x)
178oR -13- 4 5 3 4 3 4 (o-2) (0-2) (o-i)
2 I ? -2- 2 2
1782DHk 4 4
1784j 4 4 2 1 ? I I 2 2

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All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
 TABLE I--continued

THE SIZE AND COMPOSITION OF ORCHESTRAS 1774-1796

>
o ; .I)o
-
0 u . "=
BERLIN (y) >=
1787j 9 5 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
BERLIN (z)
1782DHk -5 2 2 I 2 2
1782DH 4 4 2 3 I 2 2 2 2
BETHLEHEM, USA (y)
1780J 2 2 1 1-2 2 I 2 0-2
BONN (w)
N
1774 -7 - 2 I 226
1782HRjk 4-6 4-6 4 (2) 2 4
--2 1
DHRk -9-I 1- 2 2 2-3 2 -21 3 4 2-3
1783
I788 N (5) (5) (2) (2) (2) (2) (-2- ) (3) (4) (2) (i)
8 8 4 3 3 2 2 2 2 2 6
1791j
BONN (x)
1791 D 4 4 2 3 3 2 2 2 2 2 4
BOCKEBURG (w)
o
1780os? 2-3 2-3 1 1 1 --2 1 2
CASSEL (w)
1782DHk 6 1 2 2 2 2 2
5 2
1783DHk 7 7 2 2 2 2 2 3
I783j 7 4 2 3 2 2 2 2 4
i789j 6 6 4 4 2 2 2 2 2 4 2 1

COBLENZ (w)
1I782DHjk -13 4 2 3 3 3 2 3 4 2 I
--13- 3 2 3 3 4 2 3 6 2 1
L785D
LI790j
COLOGNE (v)
-72- I I o-I 0-Io -2 I 2 0-3 (1)
1792D 3 3 I 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 I 1
COPENHAGEN (w)
1784DH -7 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

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DANZIG (y)
1785 4 4 2 2 2 2 2 2
DETMOLD (w)
r1778D 2 2
--4--2

L 78o0
b -5- I 2 2 2 2

DONAUESCHINGEN (w)
1790 Zi 3-5 1 2 2 0-2 2 2 1I
I
DRESDEN (w) .
[782 DHQRj 8 8 4 3 4 3 5 4 3 (2) (1)
L1783Rjk 8 7 4 4 3 3 4 4 3 (2) (1)
ESTERHAZA (w)
OP 1-2 I I 0-I 2 1-2 2
[1774
178oAPS
2-3 2-3
-6-12- 1-7 2 1-2 1 2 0-2 2-5 2 I
1783 AHQYbj - 2 2 2 2 2 2
--10-
1790A -5-8
- -2 2-3 I o-2 2-3 2-4 4-5
FLORENCE (y)
178osF (5) (4) (1) I 2 2 2
FRANKFURT (x)
1792J 6 6 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1
GOTHA (w)
- -- I
[;782 DHjk 1-2 3 o-I 4
783j -7- 2 2 1 2 2 1 4
THE HAGUE (x)
I 1
[ 775f
L 780 f
4 4 2
2
2
2 I -2-
2
1
2
2
5 3
HAMBURG (y)
1776m (6) (6) (4) (5) (4) (4) (4) (4) (2)
HANOVER (w)
1782DH (4) (4) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2)
LEIPZIG (x)
1778L 8 8 3 2 2 2 2 2 2
L1781L
DH
-13- 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
1781 6 6 3 -4- 2 2 3 2 2 1
L782L 6 6 2-3 -4- 2 2 2 2 0-I
LEIPZIG (y)
1782? L 4 3-4 o- 2 2 2 0-
LONDON (w)
1783Dj 3 3 2 2 I 0-1 2 0-1 ? 2

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All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
 TABLE I--continued

THE SIZE AND COMPOSITION OF ORCHESTRAS 1774-1796

-4
0 0 0
O
4.)0 d
0W .
I
> .
I
u 0: .
": . "
LONDON (x)
179oT 7 8 4 4 3 2 2 2 2 2 2
1791T 2 1 2 1
5-- 2
LONDON (x)
- I I I I
[ 789 T 4-- 3 1 2 3
179oT -5 2 2 ? 3 I I
21
1791 T -5- I I 2 3 I I 2 2 I
1792 T -7- 2 I I 3 I I 2 2
1793T -9- I 2 2 4 I 2 2 3 1
1794T 5 5 2 2 2 2 I 2 2 3 I

1795T -13-- 2 3 3 3 I 3 3 3 I
LONDON(y)
1776D 8 8 5 4 2 4 4 4 2 I
6-8 6-8 4 3 4 2 2 2 2 2 I
['791 DHQXk
WXj 6-8 6-8 4 5 4 2 2 2 2 2 I
L1793 (2) (2)
1795WY (12) (12) (5) (6) (5) (4) (4) (4) (4) (I)
LYONS (x)
1785n 4-5 4-5 2 3 1 -2. 0-1 2 2

MADRID (z)
1786d (3) (3) (1 (1)) () I 2 2 2

[
MAINZ (w)
- 2 I 2 2 1 2
782 DHbjk o10-- - 3
1783D 6 6 2 2 2 3 2 I 2
1790j 6 6 2 2 3 3 3 3 2 3
MANNHEIM (v)
1777CDH 1o-11 10o-I 4 4 4 2 2 2 4 2 2 1

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MANNH-IM (w)
QR 4 4 3 3 3 4 4 (2) (1)
E[776
1782DHjk
-19-
-25- 3 4 3 4 3 4 4
(2)
6 2 1
MANNHEIM (x)
1778C (7) (7) (2) (3) (2) (1) (2) (2) (2) (2) (1)
MECKLENBURG (w)
2H
178 1
I783 Dj 3 4 2 1 I 2 2 3

[
MUNICH (w)
1778DH
178oZ
--17 2
(4)
2
(4)
2
(4)
3
(4)
3
(3)
2
(4)
4
(4)
(2)
(3)
(I)
(1)
MUNICH (x)
(o10) (o10) (3)
1780Z (6) (6) (3) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (4) (2) (2) (I)
MONSTER (w)
1782C -7- 2 2 2 2 3 2 2 ?
NAPLES (x)
1773Dc 16 16 4 3 4 4 4 ?
15 14 4 2 8 2 2 2 2 2 2 1
S786Dc 2 6 2 2
1796Dc 13 12 4 0-2 4 4 0-2 0-I

OTTINGEN (w)
- 2 2 2 2 2 2
1789g 1o-12-
OXFORD (y)
1789a 3 3 2 1 I 0-I 2 0-2 2 1-2
PARIS (x)
1774E 1o 1o 3 8 7 - 7- 2 8 2 I I
1776E 14 14 4 12 5 - 8- 2 8 2 2 (i)
12 16 - 8- 2 8 2 2
1777E 12 5 5 3
6 - 2 2 2
1778E 14 14 12 5 7- 7 3
1779E 12 12 6 9 4 --7- 2 5 4 (3) 1

1788QRj 6 12 5 2 4 2 4 2 0-3 1
-25--

1790D 14 14 6 12 5 2 4 2 5 4 0-3 I

E 12 12 5 5 2 4 2 5 4 0-4 1
1o
.1793

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 TABLE i--continued
THE SIZE AND COMPOSITION OF ORCHESTRAS 1774-1796

PARIS (y)
1774E 13 13 4 12 4 2 3 2 4 2 2
1778E 12 I 6 8 6 -----6---- 4 - 5- I
io io 8 ----6---- 3 5- I
178o E 5 4
--- I
--- -- 4
1784E ko o 4 9 4
5 o 4 ---- --- I
1788j No No 4 ---6---
----- I
I789 E II o 5 o 4 ----6--- 4
- -
179 E to 8 4 to 4 --7- 3
1782DH 6 6 2 4 I 2 2 2
P DH 6 6 2 3 2 -- 2 2
782
1786XY (1o) (12)
(12) (6) No
2 4 4 4
2 2 2 1
179 D 7 6 3 4 3 3 2 4
PARIS (z)
1770sI 3-4 3-4 1-2 2 1-2 I-6l (
PHILADELPHIA (x)
1793 M (3) (3) (i) (2) (1) (i) (2) (2) (II)
PRAGUE (x)
1787DH 3 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1
3 4 2 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
1796Dj
PRESSBURG
(BRAT7ISLAVA) (w)
1783Hk -9-12- 2-3 2 2 0- 2 1-2 1-2 2 2 (
REGENSBURG (w)
1783DHjk 6 6 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 4 4 (
ROME (x)
1796G -3-4- 21 2
-i
o-i2
2-2
RUDOLSTADT (w)
1791j 5 5 3 3 2 2 2 2 I 3 2 I (
SALZBURG (w)
(1) ()
[770osZ (8-io) (8-jo)
6 6
(2)
1
(-2-3-)
2
(-2-3-) (3-4) (2-3)
2 2
(2)
1784C 4 3
SCHWEDT (w)
1782DHk 3 3 2 2 2 3 2 3 2

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STOCKHOLM (w)
4 8 4 3 ? 2 2 1
[1783DRj -15- 4
6 2 2
2
2 2 4 2 1
1790o (8) (8) 7 4
STUTTGART (w)
6 3 2 ? ?
[I782DHQRjk
1787j
-i3-
8 8 2
3
3
3
2
1-2
2
3
2 2 2 2
1789j I1 II 3 3 4 3 4 2 4 (2) (1)
STUTTGART (x)
7 7 6 3 3 2 3 2 2 2
17741
TREVES (TRIER) (w)
I788 V -5- 4 2-3 3 3 4 3 3-4 (2) (2)
TRIESTE (x)
1793K 5 5 2 I 2 2 2
TURIN (w)
1775DHQ 9 9 2 3 5 ? ?
TURIN (x)
1774F 13 5 (4) (6) ---- 4 4 2 I
15 2 I
179oB -23- 7 5 7 -5- 3 4 2

[
VIENNA (w)
782DHjk 2 2 3
6 - 60- 2 2 2 2
1782Qj 4 3 3
796 Qj 6 6 4 3 4 2 2 2 2 2
-
L796R 12- 2
2
2 1trmb
VIENNA (x)
1781-3DH 6 6 4 3 3 2 2 2 4 2 I
2
VIENNA (y)
1781CDQRj 20o 20
o 8 to 4 4 (4). 6 2 2

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178 TOWARD THE REVIVAL OF THE CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA

The presenceor absence of keyboardcontinuoplayersoffersa problem

even more difficult than that of the trumpetand timpaniplayers,in part
because certainmodernhistorianshave chosento suppressthe relevantin-
formation."The numberof keyboardplayersis furtherobscuredbecause
in manyinstancesthemaestro and thekeyboardplayerwereone and thesame
person,who choseto be listedat thehead ofhisorganisation as maestrorather
thanat thefootas continuoplayer.Butthefactthattherewas usuallysomeone
presentcapable ofplayingcontinuodoes not,unfortunately, tellus whenthe
continuowas used and whenit was omitted."We knowthattheharpsichord
continuowas suppressedat a revivalof Rameau's Zoroastre in Parisin 1770,
but that thiscaused severeintonationproblemsamong the singersand the
instrument was soon reinstated.m As earlyas the 176osperformances in some
places mustoccasionallyhave been heard withoutkeyboardcontinuo,for
why else would C. P. E. Bach have feltcalled upon to warn against that
practice?37
Despiteevidenceofa declinein thecontinuotradition, however,we believe
thatMozartplayedcontinuoduringthetuttisofhispianoconcertos, including
the late ones. He led his operasfromthe harpsichordor fortepianoas well.
It is not at all clear whetherhe (or someoneelse) did the same forhis late
symphonies.38 We know that Haydn directed his London symphonies
(jointlywith Salomon at the head of the violins)fromthe harpsichordor
fortepiano(and on one occasionfromtheorgan)althoughwhathe played-
beyondone briefpassage whichhas survived-is not known.39London, in
any case, was conservativein thismatter,as Mendelssohndiscoveredto his
amusement whenhe arrivedtherein 1829 toconductthePhilharmonic Society

34 'For the presentpurposeit has not been considerednecessaryto include in the listsall the
playerson keyboard-instruments, harps, lutes, or otherchordal instruments...' (Carse,
opcit.,28).
* For example, the rosterof orchestramembersof the Concertspirituelpublishedannually
in the ParisianAlmanach includesthe organistClaude Balbastreup throughthe
desspectacles
1772-3 season,whileafterthatno keyboardplayeris listed;one noticesamongthedirectors,
in the 177osand 1780s,however,one or more personsqualifiedto play keyboardcontinuo.
3, FriedrichMelchior Grimm,Correspondance littiraire,
philosophique et critique,
ed. by Maurice
Tourneux (Paris, 1879), viii, 451.
iiberdiewahreArtdasClavier
37 C. P. E. Bach, Versuch ZUspielen,partii (Berlin,1762), introduction;
see the English translationby William Mitchell,Essayon theTrueArtof PlayingKeyboard
Instruments (New York, 1949), 173. See also Johann Mattheson,Das Neu-Eroffnete Orchestre
(Hamburg,1713),263-
3 For the evidenceon continuo
playingin the piano concertos,see chapter9 of Eva and Paul
Badura-Skoda'sInterpreting MozartontheKeyboard (London, 1962). For evidenceof Mozart's
conductingopera fromthe harpsichord or fortepiano,see Deutsch,op.cit.,8o, 128, 272, 276.
407, 460, and 519; Bauer, Deutsch,Eibi, op. cit.,i, 257, 270, 279, 414; ii, 465, 471, 473; iii,
239; iv, 195. Mozart'ssister'accompanied'symphonies on theharpsichord in 1778 (Leopold's
letterof 12 April 1778).
39In the finale of Symphony no. 98. See Landon, The Symphonies of JosephHaydn,
I18-21, 589, 767; and HaydninEngland,534-6. At an 1816performanceofone ofClementi's
symphonies, thecomposerplayed'isolatedchordswhichhestruckas an accompaniment on the
piano' (Plantinga,op. cit.,235).

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TOWARDTHE REVIVALOF THE CLASSICALORCHESTRA 179
in a symphony ofhisand foundhimselfplaced at a piano." Framery,writing
around 1790, givesus a hintthatthe keyboardcontinuowas losingcertain
of its traditionalfunctionswhen he informsus that '... [the Italians] are
littlein the habit of strikingand holdingchords,exceptin recitative;they
preferto performthe melodyor the mostsalientorchestralpartswith the
righthand'." Butas late as I802 Koch wrotethat'. .. onestillusestheharpsi-
chordin themajorityoflargeorchestras, partlyforthesupportofthesingers
in therecitative, partly(and also chiefly)forthefilling
outoftheharmonyby
meansofthethorough-bass'.4a To thiswe mayadd thatin theperiod1774-96
severalorchestras alsohad lute,theorboorharpplayerswho,lackingobbligato
parts,mayalso have playedcontinuo(especiallyin theoperapit).
The membershipof many orchestraswere divided into two categories:
highlypaid soloists(concertino, petitchoeur)and poorlypaid tutti
Soloisten,
players(ripieno, Thus
grandchoeur).
Ripienisten, itappearsthattheleadersofan
orchestrahad available to themtheoptionthatsoloistic, soft,chromatic,and
contrapuntalpassagescould be playedbyonlythesmallgroupoffineplayers,
withtheothersfallingin fortheloud, homophonictuttis.3
would have had the purelypracticaladvantageofimproving This.arrangement
the qualityof
performances despiteinadequate rehearsaltimeby gettingthe technically
difficult spotsaccuratelyplayed and by seeingthatthe all-important piano-
forte contrasts were automaticallyobserved. It may also have served the
veryimportantpurposesof providingforgreatervarietyof timbreand of
maintaininga certain elementof personal interpretation which, froma
of
modernpoint view, might be considered lackingin the absence of an
interpretative conductor.
thatduringtheperiodI774-96 no systematic
It is striking patternofgrowth
in thesize oforchestras can be detected." If,however,we classifytheorches-
trasaccordingto thetypesoforganisations whichsupportedthem,we finda
clear statisticaltrend: private orchestrasaveraged 7 violinists,church
orchestrasaveraged I I, courtorchestras12, opera and theatreorchestras
14,
whileconcertorchestrasaveraged 19.
A problemwiththedata ofTable I is thepreponderance ofstatistics
from

40 SebastianHensel,TheMendelssohn Family(1729-1847) (London,I88i), i, 184-5.

41 Nicolas-EtienneFramery,'Accompagnement', mithodique,
Encyclopidie i, 17.
42 Koch, op.cit.,article'Fliigel',col. 587.

43 Forkeland Cramer(see note45 below) oftenshow the divisionbetweenthesetwo groupsin

reportingabout orchestrasin German-speakinglands. The rostersof Parisian orchestras
publishedannuallyin the Almanach desSpectacles
oftenshow the divisionintopetitand grand
choeurs as well. An authenticset of partsforHaydn's Symphonyno. 1o3 has tuttiand solo
indicationsin the flutepart. More evidencemustbe gatheredbeforewe can be certainhow
widespreadthisperformance practicewas.
44This contradictsreceivedopinion,e.g., '... apart fromthe necessaryadjustmentto suit the
size oftheroomtherehad been a generaland progressive increasein thestrengthoforchestras
duringthe courseof the I8th century,and especially thelasttwodecadesof thatcentury'
during
(emphasisadded) (Adam Carse, The Orchestra to Berlioz(Cambridge, I948),
fromBeethoven
p. I8).

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I80 TOWARD THE REVIVAL OF THE CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA

theyears1782and 1783,alongwithan over-supply of informationfrom

lands
German-speaking compared to theamount of informationfrom else-
where.Thissituation arisesfromthefactthatin 1782Forkelpublished the
ofa survey
results ofmusicalestablishments in Germany and Austria,while
in 1783 Cramerpublishedtheresults ofanother.*Theirfigures havebeen
repeatedin variousmodemreference works,often without adequatecritical
evaluation.Asidefrom thegeographical andchronological imbalances which
thesefigures createin ourhistorical picture,theyare misleading insofaras
theyrepresent themembership of ensembles as static:one muststudyan
orchestraovera periodof timein orderto see whatit had as itsnormal
workingstrength."Orchestras were oftenenlargedby the presenceof
dilettantes,
apprentices,orwaits,whoplayedwhenlargerforces wereneeded.
On theotherhand,orchestras wereoftendiminished bymusicians goingon
tour,by sickness, by players with doubleemployment, by and economic
recession.
Also,thepresence ofa certainnumber ofmusicians on a payroll
didnotnecessarily meanthatallofthemcustomarily playedoneachoccasion.
Finally,themeaning ofthefiguresisfurthercloudedbythecommon practice
of musicians playing two or more instruments. Asidefromsuchcommon
doublings as fluteand oboe,or oboe and clarinet, it wasnotuncommon to
findwindplayerswho,whennotneededin thatcapacity,filledin at the
backofthestring section,and viceversa.
Allofthesefactors mustbe bornein
mindwhenexamining theseemingly figures
precise ofTable I.
X BALANCE
The balanceamongthefivegroupscomprising thestringsectionvaried
fromorchestra to orchestra. In manyplacesthebalancewas similarto
modemexpectations, but,forexample, at Paristheoperaorchestra hadmore
cellosandbassesthanwe might expect,whileat theNaplesandTurinoperas
thenumber ofviolasandcellosappearsinadequatetosatisfy modemnotions
of balance. (Burney, Jomelli, and Galeazzi also commented on thisim-
balance.)47 Four theorists have us
left their ideas aboutproperly balanced
string sections(Table II). Koch'sstring sectionand Petri'sof 1782havea
balancesimilarto thatofmodemstring sections,whilethestring sectionsof
Quantz,Galeazzi, and Petri (1767) are more dominated by the violins.
Apparently Petri's(I767), Quantz's,and Galeazzi'sstringsectionswere
45Johann Nikolas Forkel,Musikaliscker Almanach fir Deutschland auf das Jahr 1782 (Leipzig);
Carl FriedrichCramer,MagazinderMusik,vol.i (Hamburg,1783).
46 As has been done, forexample, in Mahling, op. cit.; Sonja Gerlach, 'Die chronologische
Ordnungvon Haydns Sinfonienzwischen1774 und 1782',Haydn-Studien, ii (1969), 34-66;
and ibid.,'HaydnsOrchestermusiker von 1761bis 774', Haydn-Studien, iv (1976), 35-46.
47 Charles Burney,Music,Men and Manners in FranceandItaly 77o, ed. by H. Edmund Poole
(London, 974), 197; Prota-Giuleo,op.cit.,i, 2o. Galeazzi (op.cit.,i, 2I5n) remarks,'I am ofthe
opinionthatit would alwaysproducethebesteffect iftheviolaswereone-thirdthenumberof
violins,and I have alwayscensuredthescarcityofviolasin ourorchestras'.Hence, Galeazzi's
figureswhich we have reproducedin Table II show a viola sectionthan Italian
orchestrasof the period in factused. stronger"

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TOWARD THE REVIVAL OF THE CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA 18

TABLE II

IDEALLY BALANCED STRING SECTIONS

ACCORDING TO FOUR THEORISTS

violinI violinII viola cello bass total

Quantz, Versuch... (1752):

2 2 1 I I 7
3 3 I I I 9
4 4 2 2 2 14
5 5 2 3 2 17
6 6 3 4 2 21
Petri,Anleitung...(1767):
1-2 I-2 I I 0-I 4-7
5-6 4-5 2 1-2 I 13-16
. (1782):
Petri,Anleitung..
2 1 1 [1] [o-] [5-6]
3 2 [1-2] 2 [9-10o]
7 3 4-5 2 21-22
\5
Galeazzi, Elementi
... (I79I)t
2 2 1 I o 6
3-4 2-4 2 I I 9-12
5-6 4-6 3* 2 2 16-19
7-8 6-8 4 3 3 23-26
9-1I 8-1 1 5 3 4 29-34
12-14 11-14 6 4 4 37-42
15-17 14-17 7 4 5 45-50
18-20 17-20 8 5 5 53-58
21-23 20-23 9 5 6 61-66
24-26 23-26 10 6 6 69-74
Koch, Lexikon... (1802):
4 4 2 2 2 14
5 5 3 3 2 x8
6 [6] [41 [31 [231
[14-1
8-Io 8-Io [4-6] [4-6] [41 [28-36]
* Galeazzi has '2' here,apparentlyin error.

primarilyintendedfora galant,treble-dominated,
homophonic repertory,
whileKoch'sand Petri's(1782)werebasedupona moreequal-voiced, more
contrapuntalrepertory.
thebalancebetweenthestringsectionas a wholeand the
In discussing
restoftheorchestra, tonotethatwhenanywindinstruments
itis important
wereemployedone or morebassoonscustomarily doubledthe bass line
whenever nopartwasspecifically forthem."Galeazzitellsusthatif
provided
thenumberofviolinsexceeded16, it was necessaryto doublethewinds.
* For documentation
concerningthe omnipresenceof bassoonsin the Classical orchestra,see
i, 20; and Landon, TheSymphonies
mithodique,
Encycloptdie ofJoseph
Haydn,78.

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182 TOWARD THE REVIVAL OF THE CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA

(Thatwasthecasewithan exceptional performance ofa Mozartsymphony

inViennain 1781: thestrings
were68strong andall thewindsdoubledexcept
thebassoonswhichweretripled.)49
According toKochstring sections
consist-
ing of 4-4-2-2-2 or 5-5-3-3-2 weresatisfactory forchurchor theatre
orchestrasbutforsymphonies,
where(Kochsays)therearemorewindinstru-
ments,6 first
violinswere leadingtoa string
preferable, section
of
ora totalof23 string-players." 6-[6-4-4-31],

TABLE III
PROPORTION OF STRING PLAYERS TO NON-STRINGPLAYERS IN
125 INSTANCES, 1774-1796

* = I data point
x = 2 data points

30

II-

Z : r . . .
? : : , il
_:I

t 20 0 !0 40 50
r " i i i
S10 20 30 40 50 6o 70

STRING PLAYERS

The data of Table I, when placed on a graph,confirmKoch's remarks

about thebalance betweenstringsand therestoftheorchestra(Table III).
The relationshipbetweenthe numberof stringplayersand the numberof
non-stringplayersis remarkablyorderlyfor the data taken as a whole,
howevermuchindividualcases may vary.We may expressthe balance be-
tweenstringsand non-stringsby the simplealgebraicformulaW = .39S

49 Mozart'sletterof I i April1781.
so Koch, op.cit.,articles'Besetzung',cols. 237-40, and 'Begleitung',
cois.232-7.

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TOWARD THE REVIVAL OF THE CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA 183

+ 5.13, where S = string-playersand W = the restof the orchestra.5"

Three streamsof evidenceconvergeto suggestthatforthe so-calledfull
Classicalorchestra(i.e., stringsplus pairsofflutes,oboes,clarinets,bassoons,
horns,and trumpetsas well as timpaniand (often)continuo)the character-
isticstringsectionwould have numberedabout 23: (I) Koch calls forthat
number for symphonies with full winds; (2) the line W = .39S + 5.I3 calls
for23 stringsto balance 14 non-strings; and (3) takingthe 125 orchestras
chartedon Table III, the average numberof stringsis 23 and the average
numberof non-strings 14. We must also point out, however,that of the
approximately50 symphoniesof Mozart, only tworequirethe fullclassical
orchestra,and of the 107 by Haydn, only6. Koch apparentlybelievedthat
sucha stringsectionwas barelysufficient to balance thefullwinds,and thatit
would prove inadequate when additionalwindswere employedor the full
complementofwindswrittenforindiscriminately :62

... theuseofso many windinstruments--as iscustomary nowadays, andwhichareputinto

all pieces,incessantly--contributes a greatdeal to theoverloading
oftheaccompaniment.
All whohavebreathmustnowblowin everymovement without discrimination. Bythis
meanstheeffect, whichthesparing useofwindinstruments formerly produced all byitself,
isentirelydeadened;hencethewindinstruments cometobeplacedevermoreconspicuously,
iftheeffect istobe made;andoverloading oftheaccompaniment thenbecomes an unavoid-
ableevil.
This voluminous use ofwindinstruments in all compositions
whichare written forfull
orchestra givesrise,moreover, to a further incidental
bitoffoolishnesswhich,however
perceptible seemsseldomenoughtobe noticed.
itis initseffect, Ifthecomposer works for
an orchestra inwhichthere are I6 to20 violinplayersandthenecessary violasandbassesin
proportion tothem,5andhewrites intohiscomposition oboes,bassoons,flutes,hornsand
trumpets, without doubthecalculates inso doingtowhatextent hecanassigntheharmony
and melody toall theseinstruments without disruptingthebalancebetween themandthe
principal part.Ifsucha composition thencomesbefore thepublic,itiscustomary thatitis
performed withall thewindinstruments, evenin suchmeagreorchestras thatone needs
mustmakeuseofa lorgnette inordertolocatetheperformers oftheprincipal parts....

WereKochtheonlymusicianoftheperiodtohavecomplained aboutthe
ofwindinstruments,
over-use hecouldbe dismissedas idiosyncratic.
Butthat
complaintwas heard other
from quartersas well.For a of
instance, critique
1788 concerningthe use of theorchestrain Mozart'sDie Entfiihrung
aus dem
Serailstated:"

by meansofthestatistical
stThis equationwasdetermined knownas a linearre-
procedure
Another
gression. perhapsequallyconvincing ofthedataofTable III would
interpretation
takenoteofanapparent between
discontinuity withfewer
orchestras than29string
players and
thosewithmorethan30 (whichdiscontinuity maycoincide roughly whichdid
withorchestras
and did notdoubletheirwinds).Thisalternative wouldemploytwolinear
interpretation
yielding
regressions, a linewitha steeperslopethanW= 5.13+.39S forthesmaller orchestras
anda linewitha shallowerslopeforthelargerorchestras.
's Koch,op.cit.,
cols.235-6.
53Extrapolating fromKoch'sownfigures as givenin Table II, thiswouldresultin a string
sectionof8/1I-8/ -4/--4/6--4.
s4 Deutsch, op. cit.,328.

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 84 TOWARDTHE REVIVALOF THE CLASSICAL
ORCHESTRA
. . thecomposer
has beentoo loquaciouswiththewindinstruments.
Insteadofonly
themelodywherethatis required,and supporting
reinforcing theharmonyas a whole,they
oftendarkentheformer thelatter.... This is a faultintowhichthebest
and confuse
Italian composersnever fall, but which is now growingthe more common among us
[Germans] as weformerly
in proportion theroleofthewindinstruments.
neglected

A decade latera criticgreetedthepremitreofBeethoven'sFirstSymphony

in comparableterms:"
.. a symphony
wasperformed inwhichweremuchart,novelty,
andwealthofideas;but
so thatitseemedmorelikemusicforwind
therewastoomuchuseofthewindinstruments
bandthanforfullorchestra.

Such remarks must be cautiously evaluated. Are we dealing here with

legitimatecomplaintsabout a failureof thegrowthofstringsectionsto keep
up with that of wind sections,or are we insteadfaced with conservatism
fightingagainstthe emergenceof a new musicalstyle?The answeris most
probably:a bit of both. There can be, in any case, no questionabout the
stylechange: in Mozart's worksfromthe last decade of his lifehe assigned
importantnew roles to the wind instruments, while Haydn is reportedto
have said at theend ofhislife:'I have onlyjust learnedin myold age to use
the wind instruments, and now that I do understandthem,I mustleave
them'."

XI TOWARDA REVIVAL
Certainproblemsinherentin re-creating a Classical-periodorchestrahave
already emerged from recent attempts in that direction.One orchestra
performswith oboes datingfromthe beginningof the eighteenthcentury
and hand hornsfromthe-beginning of the nineteenth, withsome pre- and
some post-Tourtebows. This will not work.The instruments mustall be of
types that actually were played together during the period, and modern
playingtechniquesmustbe abandoned as well. Recentgramophonerecord-
ingsby one ensemble"7 go to some lengthsto documentthesmallnumberof
players and the authenticity of the instruments employed.The pedigreesof
the instruments are genuinelyimpressive,but whetherbecause the instru-
mentsare played with moderntechnique(continuousvibrato,continuous
legato, 'forced' tone), or because the recordingengineerhad in mind a
'symphonic'soundmoresuitedto latermusic,or becauseofan over-resonant
acoustic,the resultshardlydifferfrommore traditionalrecordings.That
clarity,lightness,brightness, leanness,and intimacy,which should be the
for
compensations givingup the powerand suavityofgood performances as
traditionallydone,seldomemergeon theserecordings, even thoughtheyare
in manyrespectswell played.This illustratestheever-present dangerofsuch
Zeitung(i5 Oct a8oo), iii, col. 49.
musikalische
" Allgemeine
5'
Barzun,Jacques,Berliozandth Romantic (London, 195o),i, 76.
Century
"7 The CollegiumAuretim.

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TOWARD THE REVIVAL OF THE CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA 185

noble experiments:the resultsmay be merelyan enfeebledversionof the

post-Romanticperforming style,ratherthan a revitalised'new' interpreta-
tion. Recent recordingsby another ensemble" seem considerablymore
successfulin applyingeighteenth-centuryperformance techniquesto their
eighteenth-century instruments.c
Whateverthepitfallsmaybe, all attemptsto playon old-styleinstruments
should be welcomed,fortheyconstitutethe onlylaboratoryin whichideas
about historicalperformancecan properlybe tested,and it may well take
thousandsofsuchexperiments beforefirmhistoricaland musicalconclusions
can be reached about what is authentic,what is effective, and, indeed,
whatis possible.5'

The followingmusical illustrations

were heard, and the followingslides
shown,duringthelecture:
Beethoven,Sonata no. 30 in E major,op. 9og.Prestissimo:JiirgDemusplayingBeethoven's
Graf fortepianoof c1825 (BASF BAC 3063); Haydn, Trio in C major, Hob. XV.27,
Presto: the Amad6 Trio (Malcolm Bilson,fortepiano, Sonya Monosoff,baroque violin,
JohnHsu, baroque cello) (TitanicTi-i 2).
b The orchestraof the Turin opera, 1740: Hellmuth ChristianWolff,Oper,Szene und
Darstellungvonr6oobis I9oo (MusikgeschichteinBildern,vol. iv/i (Leipzig, I971), plate83;
seatingplan oftheNaples opera orchestra, 1786: citedin footnote i i above; theorchestra
forRameau's La princesse de Navarre, Versailles,1745: FrangoisLesure,op. cit.,plate 5;
seatingplan oftheKing's orchestra,Versailles,1773: ibid.,plate9; a concertat Vauxhall
Gardens,London,1786: FrancoisLesure,MusicandArtinSociety (University Park, 1968),
plate 49; unidentified'classical' orchestra:Paul Henry Lang and Otto Bettman,A
PictorialHistory
ofMusic (New York, t96o), p. 69, upperright; orchestra of ?178osfrom
passe-partouttitlepage of FlorentinepublisherGiovanniChiari: Marc Pincherle,An
Illustrated ofMusic(London, 1967), p. 127,bottom;concertin a Venetianospedale,
History
after1782: Schwab, op. cit.,plate 44; anotherconcertin a Venetianospedale:Pincherle,
p. 131.
C Carl Stamitz,Symphony in El major,Presto:CollegiumAureum(BASF BHM 29048-4);
JohannStamitz,Symphonyin D major,op. 3 no. 2, Presto:AcademyofAncientMusic
(L'oiseau-lyreDSLO 505); JohannChristianBach, Symphony in D major,op. 18 no. 6,
Allegro con spirito: Collegium Aureum (BASF BHM 19 20309--3); Thomas Arne,
Overtureno. 5 in D major,Presto:AcademyofAncientMusic(L'oiseau-lyreDSLO
503).

"*The of AncientMusic.
59The Academy
variousstagesin the well-documented revivalin the 2othcenturyof the harpsichord-
theinstrumentitself,itstechnique,itsrepertory,
and itsperformance to this
practices-testify
process.A major studywhich came into my hands too late to be takenaccount of here is
ChristophHellmut Mahling, Orchester in Deutschlandon 1700oo
undOrchestermusiker his 85o
Saarbricken, 1972). A revisedversionof Mahling's study is
(unpubl. Habilitationsschrift,
scheduledforpublicationby Birenreiter,Cassel, in 1978.

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186 TOWARD THE REVIVAL OF THE CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA

REMARKSCONCERNINGTABLE I
Bracesin the left-handmarginsindicateone and thesame organisationin different years(or
occasionallyin thesame yearaccordingto divergentreports).Each place name is followedby a
lower-caseletterin bracketsindicatingthe typeof orchestrainvolved(see abbreviationslisted
below). Followingeach date one or morelettersindicatefromwhichof the publicationslisted
belowtheinformation was drawn.Wheneveran orchestrawasshownas havingan odd numberof
violins,withouta divisionbetweenfirstand seconds beinggiven,the figurehas been placed
betweenthe twocolumnsamidstdashes,and the same conventionhas been applied to players
%ho doubled on fluteand oboe, oboe and clarinet,etc. Whendoublinginvolvednon-adjacent
columns,anotherconventionwas adopted: if,forexample,an orchestrahad two clarinettists,
ne of whomdoubled on timpani,thenin the clarinetcolumnwill be found'1-2' and in the
timpanicolumn'o-i'. Figuresin bracketsare thosewhichinvolvedsome speculationor extra-
polation,eitheron thepartofthesourceusedor on mypart.

Typesoforchestra Instruments
v churchorchestra amor viola d'amore
w courtorchestra bh bassethorn
x opera or theatreorchestra batt battery
y concertorchestra cbsn contrabassoon
z privateorchestra gamb viola da gamba
pant pantaleon
picc piccolo
serp serpent
thbo theorbo
trmb trombone

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Aufzeichnuagen.Gesamtausgabe (Cassel, 1962-75), ii, Ior, 499; iii, io6; vi, Igo.
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