PROGRAMMING FOR THE YOUTH AND COMMUNITY ORCHESTRA:
BEETHOVEN AND SCHUBERT AS MODELS FOR SELECTION
A CREATIVE PROJECT
SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL
IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS
FOR THE DEGREE
MASTER OF MUSIC
BY
MICHAEL LUND ZIEGLER
MR. DOUGLAS DROSTE - ADVISOR
BALL STATE UNIVERSITY
MUNCIE, INDIANA
MAY2016
1
Amongthemanychallengesfacingtheorchestralmusicdirector,ofsignificant
importanceistheartofprogramming.Throughthisprocess,themusicdirectormust
balanceaneedtocreateengagingconcertsthatwillattractandaffectanaudience,withan
equalneedtoengagethemembersoftheorchestra,whileofferingthemusiciansa
challengeappropriatetotheirindividualandcollectivelevelofskillandmusicalmaturity.
Thisprocessis,inaway,easiestwithmoreskilledorchestras.Thatistosay,themore
talentedandmaturetheorchestra,themoretoolsatthemusicdirector’sdisposalallowing
forawiderarrayofrepertoirefromwhichtochoose.Theartofprogrammingis,perhaps,
moredifficultwithlesserskilledcommunityandyouthorchestras.
Asyoungconductorsenterthefield,theywilllikelyfindthemselvesatthehelmof
theselesserskilledgroups.Whileinconsistentgradingsystemsexistforschoolaged
orchestralrepertoire,aidingthejuniorhighandhighschoolorchestraconductorin
repertoireselection,onceoneventuresintotheworldofstandardorchestralrepertoire,no
suchbreakdownexists.Howdoesthemusicdirectorofacommunityoryouthorchestra
determineifapieceinthestandardorchestralrepertoireisappropriatefortheir
orchestra?HavingrehearsedandperformedBeethoven’sfirstsymphonywithacommunity
basedfestivalorchestrainGreenBay,Wisconsin,andthefirstmovementofSchubert’s
“Unfinished”symphonywiththeBallStateUniversityCampusOrchestra,Iknowthesetwo
piecestobeappropriateforsuchensembles.Twoquestionscometomind:whatabout
thesepieces,fromtheircompositionalstructuretotheirtechnicalchallenges,makethem
appropriate?Fromcommonalitiesbetweenthetwo,cantherebedrawnany
generalizationsthatbegintopaintapictureofwhichmusicalcharacteristicsofthe
repertoireareappropriateforensemblesofasimilarskilllevelmightbeconstructed?
2
BEETHOVEN
ForthesummerorchestrainGreenBay,Beethoven’sfirstsymphonyprovedan
appropriatechallenge.Theorchestra,whichrehearsedsixtimesbeforetheperformance,
consistedmainlyofhighschoolstudentsandcommunitymembers—allamateurmusicians.
TheBeethovensymphonywastheirfirstventureintomajorsymphonicliterature.
Rehearsaltimewassufficient,thegroupfeltconfidentleadingintotheperformance,and
theconcertwassuccessful.
Forafull,four-movementsymphony,Beethoven1isamodest26minutesinlength,
eachmovement9,7,4,and6minutesrespectively.1Thecompositioncallsfortwoeachof
flutes,oboes,clarinets,bassoons,horns,andtrumpets,inadditiontotimpaniandafull
complementofstrings.Withonlyminimaldivisipresentinthestringparts,asmallerstring
sectioncouldbeused.ThefourmovementsarewritteninthemajorkeysofC,F,C,andC,
respectively.Withintheharmonicstructure,themajorkeysofGandBbandtheminorkeys
ofG,E,DandCcanbefound.2
However,Beethoven’sSymphonyNo.1doespresentitsshareofmodestchallenges.
Theslowintroductionofthefirstmovementchallengestheorchestratomaintainasteady
pulse;simplesyncopationispresentthroughoutthemovementbeginninginm.57;
sequencedoff-beatentrancesbeginninginm.144requirefocusedsubdivision;similar
focusisrequiredinthestringsinmm.189-201.Thebeginningofthesecondmovement
requiresastrongandconfidentsecondviolinsection.Thethirdmovement,writteninthree
butfeltandconductedinone,challengesthegrouptomaintaintempoandaccurate
1DavidDaniels,OrchestralMusic:AHandbook(Lanham,MD:TheScarecrowPress,2005),
48.
2GlennBlock,“SymphonyNo.1,Op.21,”inTeachingMusicthroughPerformancein
Orchestra,ed.DavidLittrellet.al.(Chicago:GIAPublications,2001),497.
3
subdivision.Additionally,thetriopresentsfastscalarpassagesinbothviolinparts.Likethe
thirdmovement,thefinale,whilewrittenintwo,isfeltinonebeginningwiththeAllegro
moltoevivaceinm.6.Typicallyperformedbriskly,theconductormustallowthe
proficiencyofthegrouptodeterminethemovement’soptimaltempo.Additional
challengesincluderapidscalarpassagesinthestringsbeginningoffthebeatinmm.38-45
andagaininmm.100-165.
Concerningrangeinindividualparts,Beethovenpresentsonlymodestchallenges.In
thestrings,theviolinsrisetoG6,thesecondviolinpartpeakingatC6.Theviolaspeakat
E5,cellosatA4,andbassesatG3(writtenG4).Onlythecelloshaveawrittenclefchange.
Eightbarsarescoredintenorclef,butcouldeasilyberewritteninbassclefifneeded.To
accessthisrange,theviolinandviolapartsrequireshifting.Cellosmustshifttofifth
position.Bothviolinpartsandtheviolapartcontainwrittendoublestops.
Inthewoodwinds,theflutesarewrittentoA6,oboestoD6,clarinettoA5,and
bassoontoAb4.TheclarinetpartsarewrittenforCclarinet,butBbclarinetpartsare
available.Thebassoonpartsremaininbassclefthroughout.Inthebrass,thehornparts
peakatC5andthetrumpetsatG5.ThehornpartsarewrittenforCandFhorn,depending
onthemovement,whilethetrumpetpartsarewrittenforCtrumpet.FhornandBb
trumpetpartsareavailableforallmovements.Nodoubletonguingorotheradvanced
techniquesarerequiredforanywindorbrasspart.Thetimpanipartrequirestwodrums
andcontainsnomid-movementtuningchanges.
SCHUBERT
LiketheBeethovensymphonyforthesummerorchestrainGreenBay,thefirst
movementofFranzSchubert’s“Unfinished”symphonyprovidedanappropriatechallenge
4
fortheBallStateCampusOrchestra(BSCO).TheBSCOrehearsedweeklythroughoutthe
courseofasemesterbeforepresentingitsconcert;itconsistsmainlyofundergraduate
collegestudentsmajoringinsomethingotherthanmusic.Presumably,somemembershave
hadprivateinstructionontheirinstrumentinthepast,butmostcometotheorchestraonly
withhighschoolbandand/ororchestraexperience.
ThismovementfromSchubert’stwo-movementsymphonyis12minutesinlength
andcallsfortwoeachofflutes,oboes,clarinets,bassoons,horns,andtrumpets,3
trombones,timpani,andafullcomplementofstrings.3Withonlyminimaldivisipresentin
thestringparts,asmallerstringsectioncouldbeused.ThemovementisinBminorand
doesnotstrayfarfromthekey.
AswithBeethoven,theSchubertmovementpresentssomeitemsneedingattention
fromconductorandorchestra.Theentiremovementmovingatamodesttempo,keeping
thepaceconsistentisimportant.Thestringsbearthebulkofthisresponsibility,beginning
withostinato-likesixteenthnotesinninthmeasure.Asthemovementprogresses,likethe
firstmovementoftheBeethovensymphony,itiseasyfortheorchestratoslowdown.The
trombonesplayasignificantmelodicroleneartheclimaxofthemovement:astrong
trombonesectioniskey.Asyncopatedostinatoappearsfirstinm.42andreappears
throughoutthemovement.Additionally,thoughnotessentialforasatisfyingperformance,
thesofterthestrings—especiallythelowstrings—canplayinthepianoandpianissimo
sections,themoreeffectivethemovementbecomes.
Theindividualpartsrequireamodestuseofeachinstrument’srange.Theviolins
mustreachBb6(secondviolinspeakingatA5),andtheviolaspeakatEb5.Toaccessthis
3Daniels,339.
5
range,theviolinandviolapartsrequireshifting.ThehighestnoteinthecellopartisG#4,
andthebassesrisetoF#3(writtenF#4).Thecellopartcontainsfourbarsintenorclef,
whichcouldbeeasilyrewritteninbassclefinnecessary.Thecellopartrequiresshiftingto
fifthposition,andbothviolinpartsandtheviolaparthavewrittendoublestops.
ThefirstflutepartrequiresplayinguptoA6,theoboetoE6,theclarinettoB5,and
thebassoontoBb4.TheclarinetpartsarewrittenforAclarinet,thoughBbpartsare
available.Thereisabriefsectionoftenorclefwritinginthebassoonpart.Thehornsreach
A4,trumpets:G#5,andtrombones:G4.ThehornpartsarewrittenforDhorn,thoughF
partsareavailable.ThetrumpetpartsarewrittenforEtrumpet,thoughBbpartsare
available.Thetrombonepartsarewritteninthealtoandtenorclefs,thoughbassclefparts
areavailable.Nodoubletonguingorotheradvancedtechniquesarerequiredofanyofthe
woodwindorbrassplayers.Thetimpanipartrequirestwodrumsandcontainsnotuning
changes.
GENERALIZATIONS
Bothworks—Beethoven’sfirstsymphonyandthefirstmovementofSchubert’s
“Unfinished”symphony—havebeensuccessfulprogrammingchoiceswithcommunity
orchestralevelensembles.Infindingsimilaritiesinbothpart-writingandlarger
performancechallenges,abasicideaofwhatmakesanappropriateprogrammingchoice
forgroupsofthislevelbeginstotakeshape.Ananalysisoftheupperrangelimitsforeach
instrumentinthetwopieces(asseenintable1)revealsthefollowingcommonalities:
moderate-levelshiftingisrequiredoftheupperstrings;cellosmustshifttofifthposition;
bassesremainwithinthebassclefstaff;flutesstaywithintheinstrument’sfirstthree
octaves;oboesplayjustintotheirthirdoctave;clarinetwritingremainsbelowthe
6
altissimorange(saveforonenote);bassoonsremainbelowC5;F-hornsremainwithinor
belowthewrittenstaff;Bb-trumpetsventurejustabovetheirwrittenstaff.Appearingin
onlytheSchubert,thereisnotenoughinformationtodrawconclusionsabouttrombone
writing.
Table1.Upperlimitsofcomposedrange
Piece
Vn Va Vc Db Fl Ob Cl(Bb) Bn Hn(F) Tpt(Bb) Tbn
Beethoven
G6 E5 A4 G3 A6 D6 A5(B5) Ab4 C5(G5) G5(A5) N/A
Schubert
Bb6 Eb5 G#4 F#3 A6 E6 B5(C#6) Bb4 A4(E5) G#5(A#5) G4
Pitchesnotedinconcertpitch.Writtenpitchesparenthetical.
Inadditiontorangelimits,anumberofotherpart-specificgeneralizationscanbe
drawn.Thestringwritingincludesamixeduseofdivisianddoublestops.Wherewritten
doublesstopsmightbetoochallengingforasectionorindividualforreasonsofshiftingor
intonation,thepartcanbeplayeddivisi.Neitherpiecespecifiesnon-divisiatanypoint.
Neitherpiecerequiresanyadvancedtechnique,includingdoubletonguing,fromthe
woodwindsorbrassplayers.Anywrittenclefchangescanbeeasilyre-written,asneeded,
inaninstrument’snativeclef,andpartsareavailableforstandardwindinstrumentswhen
writtenforadifferenttransposition(whilethisallowsforeaseofaccessforplayerslacking
called-forinstrumentsorneededtranspositionskills,resultantkeysignaturesaremore
challenging).Thetimpanipartsinbothworksusetwodrumsanddonotrequiremidmovementtuningchanges.
Overallsimilaritiesinbothpiecesincludethechallengeofmaintainingsteadypulse,
especiallyinslowersectionsormovements,andtheuseofbasicsyncopation.Keystructure
minimallyventurespastkeyswithmorethan2sharpsorflats(Beethovenmovesbriefly
intoCminor)andfeatureminimalchromaticwriting.Wherelengthisconcerned,whilethe
7
Beethovensymphonyis26minutesoverall,nomovementofeitherworkislongerthan12
minutes.Lastly,neitherpiececallsforinstrumentationbeyondmodestwindandstandard
stringsections,withapercussionsectionlimitedtotimpani.
CONCLUSIONS/FUTURERESEARCH
Programmingremainsatalltaskforanyorchestralmusicdirector,especiallythe
musicdirectorofacommunityoryouthorchestra.Toproperlyprogramforhisorher
orchestra,themusicdirectormustmatchanintimateknowledgeoftheabilitiesofhisor
herorchestrawithliteratureengagingforbothplayersandaudiencewhilesatisfyingthe
musicalthirstofbothparties.Thelimitedskillsetand/ormusicalmaturityofthe
communityoryouthorchestrasignificantlyreducesthetools(repertoire)atthemusic
director’sdisposaltoaccomplishsuchatask.
Whilenosetofcriteriaorguidelineswillperfectlymatchallorchestras,following
theanalysisofBeethoven’sfirstsymphonyandthefirstmovementofSchubert’s
“Unfinished”symphony,bothofwhichhavebeensuccessfullyprogrammedwithorchestras
ofacommunity/youthorchestralevel,apicturebeginstotakeshapeofwhatappropriate
literatureforsuchensembleslookslike.AppendixAoffersthebeginningofasetof
guidelinesfortheseensembles.Becauseitisconstructedbasedonthestudyofonlytwo
piecesofmusic,theseguidelinesareaworkingdocument,tobesure.Furtherstudyis
neededtocontinuetorefinethedocumentandmakeittrulyusefulonabroadspectrum.
Todoso,morerepertoireknowntobeappropriateforandsuccessfulwithyouthand
communityorchestrasmustbestudiedinamannersimilartothetwoworksstudiedhere.
Theseadditionalfindingsneedbeusedtomodifythetool.
8
Conductorsofprofessionalorchestrashaveabroadanvariedrangeoforchestral
repertoireattheirfingertipswhenfacingthechallengeofprogramming.Juniorhighschool
andhighschoolorchestradirectorshavegradedsystemsandresourcesattheirdisposal
(liketheTeachingMusicThroughPerformanceinOrchestrabooks).Themiddlearea—that
ofyouthandcommunityorchestras—remainswithoutguidelinestoaidintheallimportanttaskofprogramming.Whileincomplete,itishopedthattheguidelines
discoveredheremightserveasthebasisforabroadertooltoaidmusicdirectors,
especiallythosenewtothefield,astheyprogramfortheiryouthandcommunity
orchestrasforseasonstocome.
9
AppendixA
CharacteristicsofOrchestralLiterature
AppropriateforYouthandCommunityOrchestras
GeneralCharacteristics
• Length
o Overallnolongerthan30minutes
o Individualmovementsunder15minutes
• Instrumentation
o Basicwindswithfullstringcomplement
• Key
o Generallywithin2sharpsand/orflats
o Minimalchromaticism
• PerformanceChallenges
o Syncopatedrhythms
o Maintainingsteadypulse
Part-Writing
• Strings
o Rangerequiresmoderateshifting
o Moderatedoublestopwritingthatcanbeplayeddivisiifneeded
o Minimalclefchangesthatcanbere-writteninnativeclef
o Basicbowtechnique
• Winds/Brass
o Rangelimits
! Flutes:first3octaves
! Oboes:beginningof3rdoctave
! Clarinets:belowaltissimo(writtenC#6)
! Bassoons:C5andbelow
! HorninF:withinandbelowthestaff
! TrumpetinBb:justabovethewritingstaff
o Nouseofdoubletonguingorotheradvancedtechnique
10
Bibliography
Allen,Michael,LouisBergonzi,JacquelynDillon-Krass,RobertGillespie,JamesKjelland,and
DorothyStraub.TeachingMusicthroughPerfomanceinOrchestra.Comp.DavidLittrell
andLauraReedRacin.Vol.1.Chicago:GIAPublications,2001.Print.
Beethoven,Ludwigvan.SymphonyNo.1inCmajor.1801.Kassel:Barenreiter,1997.Print.
Daniels,David.OrchestralMusic:AHandbook.Lanham,MD:TheScarecrowPress,2005.
Print.
Schubert,Franz.SymphonyinBminor“Unfinished”.1822.Kassel:Barenreiter,1996.Print.