A very silly question...

Here i go again with the stupid stuff...

Is there such thing as a Double orchestra or something? I want to write something with 4 violin parts, 4 viola, 4 cello, and 2 double-bass parts + millions of woodwinds. You know... somethig HUGE. has anything like that ever been performed, or does such an orchestra even exist or ever existed?

I can't remember which composer it was who wrote a piece for four orchestras. It has happened, though.

You can indeed write this, but obviously you will meet constraints like the number of musicians available. Britten, for example, used two orchestras for his 'War Requiem', though one was a large symphony orchestra and the other was a small orchestra.

Also, do you want simply a large orchestra, or two orchestras seated in different parts of the room? (Or indeed in different rooms...)

If they were in different rooms, you would need some pretty tight timing and co-ordination. But this sounds like quite a feat to pull off.

Vaughan Williams' 'Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis' comes to mind; that's for 'double-stringed orchestra'. We played that one back in May in Vancouver, and just divided up our regular orchestra. Which, mind you, was huge.

double - string or double - stringed?

That's what it's called, but it just means two orchestras (of normal instruments). Heh.

That's what it's called, but it just means two orchestras (of normal instruments). Heh.

Berlioz imagined something huuuuge. On a hillside. But it didn't happen. Kinda like Scriabin's messiah thingy.

For multiple antiphonal ensembles look at Henry Brant. Although he doesn't try to coordinate the groups, give them the same pulse or whatever. But "Fire on the Amstel (1984) for four boatloads of 25 flutes each, four jazz drummers, four church carillons, three brass bands and four street organs--a three-hour aquatic procession through the canals in the center of Amsterdam" - it's happened before and it could happen again.

Or you could take the typical orchestra and write much more polyphonically - like some of Ligeti's scores, though he goes for dense sound masses and such. Not as exciting, not as much power.

I think Penderecki's seventh symphony is quite huge. Heavy on brass, extra special low horns, extended percussion three choirs(?) and four solo voices.

Hah. I have no respect for composers that can't get anything good out of regular orchestra and have to resort to HUUUUUGE ensembles. But if they make good use of it (I'm assuming you would , wolf), then it's another case. :mellow:

What are you planning on? Yeh could kidnap an orchestra, y'know. But that would probably be a silly thing to do.

Hah. I have no respect for composers that can't get anything good out of regular orchestra and have to resort to HUUUUUGE ensembles. But if they make good use of it (I'm assuming you would , wolf), then it's another case. :mellow:

What are you planning on? Yeh could kidnap an orchestra, y'know. But that would probably be a silly thing to do.

I am planing on the kidnapings, how did you know?!? i'll heve to kill all on this forum now...

oh thanks everyone for giving me so much works to think about (and listen to)

Wait, are you saying Penderecki is one of those type of composers?

And if not, who is?