Orchestration Tips

I been recently writting mainly band arrangements and piano music. But, i been hearing lots and lots of orchestra music and though "the heck with it. How hard can it be to write music for orchestra" 15 minutes later my piece ended up being totaly [bleep]. So can any of you give me tips on how to write music for orchestra better. For example.

What part of the staff is most violin music usually found on, harmonizeing stuff, melody transitions.

Study orchestral scores.

Don't try to follow the score to the music. Things happen too fast for that. Listen to a few bars then study the score with the passage fresh in your mind. Look for all the details. Work at it until you can reconstruct a page of score in your mind.

Start with simple ones, maybe just strings, or people known as excellent orchestrators - Beethoven, Elgar and the like for good conventional scoring.

If you're going to compose orchestral music you should try to think orchestrally from the start. For that, you need to get the technicalities of each instrument sorted out - range, constraints, timbre, weak and strong parts of the register, articulations, etc.

Thats hard to do when i do mainly band arrangements.. but ill give it a try :).

[re studying orchestral scores] Thats hard to do when i do mainly band arrangements.. but ill give it a try :).

Well, then study band scores. :)

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Violin music is always written (well in my experience) on a treble cleff staff the lowest note possible being a G 2 ledger lines below E. The highest note depends on the players capabilities. Just to answer your question. I agree with the others as well. If you hear a piece of music that strikes you, study it if you can get hold of it somehow (through midi or sheetmusic whatever) and see why you like it.

Looking at scores of music is definitely a great way to learn. But, I would also add that you should just practice. If you have friends who play orchestral instruments (not just a person in band who plays the trombone, but an orchestral trombone player), write something for them and ask them for tips on stuff. Also, if you're a high school student and have a gracious orchestra teacher at your school, ask them for help. "You will be the same person in a year as you are today except for the books you read (scores) and the people you talk with (experienced orchestral people)."

Hope that helps!

Thats hard to do when i do mainly band arrangements.. but ill give it a try :P.

It's what you HAVE to do if you want to write good, convincing orchestral music. It won't happen over night hence starting simply. Obviously you have to stretch your abilities a bit but don't overreach yourself too far.

Takes a bit of time. Patience and an eye for detail are needed. When you ask for crits, weigh up the experience of your critics and think about what the experienced ones have to say.

"That's boring" and "that's nice" are not helpful crits.

"Try moving the violins up an octave to open out the texture" might be!

etc.

I'll ask my band teacher for String Instruments music just to take a peek at what parts they usually get in music like... umm.... how you say it.... like.... Stringed parts in Harr Potter LOTR or Star Wars/ Jaws.

If i know what the violen/cello/strings music looks like... then it might be a wee bit easier to write.

O and BTW! I FOUND OUT HOW TO DO A DRUMROLL ON FINALE just 10 minutes ago :P.

@ Mark. HELPFUL VERY HELPFUL VERY VERY VERY HELPFUL

@ Mark. HELPFUL VERY HELPFUL VERY VERY VERY HELPFUL

Glad I could be of assistance, those helped me an awful lot, and are continuing to.