Hello Bill,
things are a bit different in Europe regarding orchestra schedules
because not so much profit orientated, speaking for Germany & Austria.
The situation is different again in countries, where state support is axed away
(e.g. Czech Republic - except Czech Philharmonic) or will be axed away as in
Italy,
which will result in a disaster for the opera houses & orchestras there.
Vienna Philharmonic (Orchestra of the State Opera):
duties to be performed: 11 services per month (opera performances, concerts)
plus a
maximum of 100 rehearsals of between 2 1/2 hours (orchestra alone) and up to 4
hours
(with stage) or the duration of the opera (dress rehearsal & the so called
Hauptprobe =
rehearsal of the full piece with corrections or repeats). These 100 rehearsals
are for
the orchestra & not for the individual player per season, but every individual
gets
paid any excess rehearsal. This rule is set, to tame the "thirst of the
producers", to
bring them to a point where they arrive at the rehearsals with orchestra having
prepared their concept of the play well. (this is a cost factor).
The concert rehearsals can last up to 2 1/2 hours & they do last this long. It
is
the experienced maximum time, to follow a rehearsal with high concentration.
Services exceeding the 11 services limit per month are paid extra also, but
these
eleven services are the average per month, so you might have 13 in one month
but nine the other month. It depends on the setting of the pieces.
You should know, that the big opera houses in Austria & Germany play every
evening - nearly, with a six to eight weeks summer break (full paid).
The Philharmonic concerts are not part of their obligations with the opera, they
are separately organized by the orchestra as a company. Section rehearsals
are extreme rare & scheduled as a part of a rehearsal. I remember von Karajans
last
rehearsals, which was for Bruckner no.7, where I first sat on the first tuba
chair,
but replaced the first horn from the 2nd rehearsal on. Von Karajan begun the
rehearsal
with the full orchestra, but sent the strings & the woods to an early lunch
break,
to work with the heavy metal (Wagnertubas, Basstuba) for an half hour.
These occasions are extreme rare. They happen for extreme difficult &
complicated
pieces only, pieces new to the repertory.
Here in Munich, we have the Radio Symphony, where they have two rehearsals
during the week days, 2 1/2 hours in the morning, lunch break, up to 2 1/2
hours in
the earlier afternoon, but they often combine these two terms into one
rehearsal of
4 hours with a longer lunch break between. Concerts are on Friday or Saturday,
even as matinee on Sunday morning. They go on tour frequently, all within their
duties. The limit of their duties is much less than in the State Opera, special
for the wind players. The orchestra is that big, that they nearly have two sets
of wind players, so one half can stay off the one week & returns the other,
while
the string players are not double, so to work harder. They do a lot of section
rehearsals as they are involved with "musica viva".
And the state opera in Munich: rehearsals for orchestra alone are set to last 2
1/2 hours,
with singers or with stage 3 hours, dress rehearsal long as the piece, last
working rehearsal (Hauptprobe) can last seven hours also (if necessary, we had
that
once during my 40 years on principal chair); concert rehearsals were set to 2
1/2 hours.
Section rehearsals are quite rare, for complicate new productions & for "not so
firm
conductors, who think like school teachers in the village" or for those
conductors
"who have to learn the pieces". The average number of services to be performed
by the principal compared with the section players varies for one service in
advantage
for the principal. The average (middle) is taken from a six or eight week
period. It was
a seven services average limit for principals during my tenure, but it has
changed since -
to the disadvantage of the players.
It is assumed, that the players arrive at the first rehearsal prepared
completely.
This does not depend on the grace of the librarian. Parts must be prepared by
the library
including cuts, special requested dynamic markings by the conductor, who will
change them
anyway again.
A bigger piece is prepared with two sets of three rehearsals for the possible
two
orchestra settings (refers to the winds & the remaining extra strings:
orchestra has 22 1st violins,
20 2nd, 18 violas, 16 violoncelli, 12 double basses, 6 flutes, 6 oboes, 6
clarinets, 6 bassoons,
10 horns, 6 trumpets, 6 trombones, 2 bass tubas & the "fireworks department".
So three rehearsals of 2 1/2 hours with group A & three with group B. After
that come the
rehearsals with singers, usually three, another three with stage plus
Hauptprobe &
public dress rehearsal. But there are performances every night (nearly) also.
I had an average of over 250 services per year (plus my vast extra activity as
"jumper"
to save performances often at extreme short notice - at lunch time: "Can you
help us
for Siegfried today at 04:00 PM - in Berlin ?" - "Well book the flight right
now, I am on the way
to the airport !" - Happen just after a rehearsal for Alpine. Sat at my place
the next morning
for another Alpine rehearsal. And the solo, and the chamber music.)
You can imagine the workload better, if you know that six to eight new opera
productions
are scheduled per season, the other pieces remaining in the repertory with
extreme
rare refreshing rehearsals, two to four new ballet productions a year, six to
eight concert programs
plus several extra concerts, several tours of the orchestra, while the
remaining members
plus hired extra players still perform at home, even smaller works.
So you ask, if we professionals practise three hours a day ? How should our lips
endure that with such a schedule. Every rehearsal, every performance is practice
for us. Arriving at such level requires a very strict study of the profession,
so to be
above most technical difficulties. Otherwise you would remain a slave of your
instrument.
If there is a change in the cast or a new conductor taking over, rehearsals are
not
scheduled, but a single rehearsal might be scheduled, to know each other a bit.
Conductor question:
A good conductor convinces all members by his personality, by his spirit & the
"aura". He
is the "engine", the "impetus" to enthusiast the orchestra for a certain piece
of music.
Try conducting along a recording of Bruckner no.8 Symphony & watch your own
feelings to
understand that. The wonderful singing in the first movement, the solemnity of
the 2nd,
the stamping dance in the third & the "Taras Bulba like" final movement. Feel
the power
you can have as a conductor. Yes, the conductor tries to balance some difficult
chords,
yes, he tries to put his prank upon the powerful things, yes, he incites some
wonderful
solo to come forward, even very little often neglected solos for the section
players, yes,
he inputs his phantasy like Carlos Kleiber (play this like "crying sadly") or
Sir Georg Solti
("I cannot speak about what´s the meaning of this beginning, because women in
the
orchestra, but that´s the meaning" - Don Juan by Strauss). Well, this kind of
conductors
are the ones, liked by the orchestra & even feared. But the result is worth the
"feared"
conductors.
What´s an orchestra hates:
These nose-picker conductors from nowhere, painting in the air like great
aerobics,
but with a giant conductor resumee (mostly they have appeared here & there
just ONCE
& never again), promoted by a certain mafia like management in an incredibly
way:
"You will get this famous tenor only, if you hire this xx conductor the same
time,
conducting this & that." You have no choice, so you agree. And the appearance
of this guy
was not pleasing the orchestra nor the audience. But what happen: his resumee
enlarged
again - guest conductor of the State Opera in xx & xx. That´s the world.
Sorry, this letter has grown so long, but the questions were complex too.
Am 22.05.2010 um 18:39 schrieb Bill Gross:
> I'm exposing my ignorance of the professional world with the following
> question. I am interested in knowing a little about the rehearsal scheme of
> professional orchestras.
>
> My assumption is that since most of the works on a schedule are from the
> well known repertoire most musicians in a professional symphony are already
> familiar with the work. Are rehearsals devoted to bringing the ensemble
> together and becoming attune to the conductors desire on a piece. Are the
> regular section rehearsal or something similar?
>
> I've picked up from conversations here that professionals seem to put in
> about 3 hours day on personal practise time. Is that a correct impression?
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