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Student FAQ

Did you know…
Do you have questions about the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra? Keep reading to find out the answers to questions that students ask us all the time. If you don't find the answer to your question here, just fill out the form at the bottom of this page and we will answer it for you.

How many people does the Meyerhoff Symphony Hall seat?
The Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall can seat 2,443 people at a time.

Does the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra play other places than the Meyerhoff?
Sure! The BSO performs all over the state of Maryland at colleges and universities, auditoriums and, in the summer, Oregon Ridge State Park. The Orchestra also tours around the country and the world, giving concerts with soloists such as Pamela Frank and Lang Lang. In fact, the Orchestra just completed tours through Europe.

How does the Orchestra decide which pieces to play on different concerts?
A number of different people help to decide which pieces are played (called the "repertoire") for each concert. Musicians, staff members, soloists, and conductors all talk together to decide which pieces will be most interesting to the audience, be most fun for the Orchestra to play, and, for youth concerts, be educational.

What are those big "screws" in the ceiling of the Meyerhoff?
Some people think that those "screws" hold the building together but actually they effect the way the music sounds in the Hall. The "acoustics" of a room effect the way you hear sound make in that room. Concert halls are designed to provide good acoustics. Panels, disks or balls hanging from the ceiling can reflect sound waves toward the audience. These screws help to reflect sound made by the orchestra. The large panels hanging above the orchestra (called the "canopy") help to reflect the sound back onto the stage so the musicians can hear themselves better. Other objects in the hall, including the carpet, the chairs, clothing, and curtains can absorb sound.

The screws also have a second purpose: they help to distribute cool air into the hall. Vents hidden beneath the screws send cool air into the hall.

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What is the conductor's job?
The conductor is the "driver" of an orchestra. He or she tells the orchestra how to play: when to stop and start, when to play loud or soft, and when to play fast or slow. The conductor does this by the way he/she moves his/her arms. Sometimes you'll see the conductor making very large motions with his/her hands. This usually means that the orchestra is supposed to play loud. The conductor faces the orchestra during the concert instead of the audience because he/she is communicating with the musicians, guiding them through the music and helping them all play together.

What are the instruments in an orchestra?
The instruments in the orchestra can be divided in to four major groups: strings, woodwinds, brass, and percussion.

The string section includes the violins, violas, cellos and basses. These instruments all have four strings and can either be played with a bow or plucked with a finger. The first chair violin player is called the "concertmaster" and directs the orchestra as they tune. The bass players stand up when they play and have the deepest sound of the string family. Listen to the string section: from Brahms' Hungarian Dance No. 7 in A Major.

The woodwind section is made up of the flute and piccolo, oboe and English horn, clarinet and bass clarinet, and bassoon and contrabassoon. The piccolo is a smaller version of the flute with a very high, bright tone. The English horn, bass clarinet and contrabassoon are large cousins to the oboe, clarinet and bassoon, respectively. They play deeper, lower tones and are larger than their cousins. The horn, though it looks like and is played like a brass instrument, is actually a member of the woodwind section. Listen to the woodwind section: from Saint Saëns' Bacchanale from Samson et Delilah.

The trumpet, trombone and tuba make up the brass section of the orchestra. Musicians make sound on these instruments by "buzzing" their lips against a cup-shaped mouthpiece at the end of their instrument. Brass instruments are often heard playing fanfares, though they can also play beautiful, peaceful music. Listen to the brass section: from Aaron Copland's Fanfare for the Common Man.

Many, many instruments make up the percussion section. Any instrument that is struck in order to make sound such as drums, cymbals, the triangle, and the xylophone are all percussion instruments. Even the piano is a percussion instrument because inside, small hammers strike the strings of the piano in order to create sound. Listen to the percussion section: from Kodály's Háry János Suite, the Viennese Musical Clock.

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Do you play twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week?
Submitted by Amanda and Joshua Simonds, Cedarmere Elementary
Even musicians need to eat and sleep! The Orchestra plays together for 20 hours each week. This includes all of their rehearsals and concerts. Musicians practice on their own in order to learn their parts for the concert. Each musician practices for a different amount of time but most play for at least 3 hours a day. In addition, many musicians give private music lessons to children and adults after-school and in the evenings.

How do you get so many musicians to play in the Orchestra?
Submitted by Amanda and Joshua Simonds, Cedarmere Elementary
There are 88 full-time musicians who play with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. This number of musicians allows the Orchestra to play a wide range of orchestral pieces with a full, complete sound. For some pieces, not all of the musicians are needed to play while for other pieces, extra musicians need to be hired.

When there is an opening in the orchestra (for example, when one of the violinists retires or gets a job with another orchestra), musicians from around the world are invited to come and audition. They all play for the Music Director and selected members of the Orchestra. The musician whose sound they think will work best with the Orchestra is offered a job with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.

What was your most popular year?
Submitted by Randolph, Cedarmere Elementary
It is very hard to tell which year was our most popular. The Orchestra presents between 170 and 190 concerts every year. We present many different types of concerts so that thee will be something for everyone to enjoy. Every year, our Mid-Week Education concerts (the concerts that are attended by school groups) and our Saturday Family concerts are some of our most popular and well-attended concerts.

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If I wanted to play the flute or the violin, how long do you have to practice a week or a day? Thank you for taking the time and effort to answer my question.
Submitted by Kasey Baker and Lauren Adams, Glenmar Elementary School, Maryland
If you want to play the flute or the violin or any other instrument, you should start by taking lessons. Your teacher will give you certain music exercises and pieces of music that you should be working on each week. This is your homework for your next music lesson. When you first begin, you should try to practice for 20-30 minutes each day. As you learn more, you will need to increase your daily practice time in order to finish your music homework.

What made you make this web site? How did you come up with this fun web site? How hard was it to make this web site we are on?
Submitted by Eric, Anthony Long, and Jonathan Whalen, Glenmar Elementary School, Maryland
We made this web site so that students, teachers and parents throughout Maryland, the United States, and the world can learn about music and about the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. We will continue to add new and fun activities on this site so that you and your classmates can keep on learning. Web sites can be very difficult to make. We worked with a designer, who made sure that the site looks good, and computer programmers, who made sure that the site runs well.

How hard is it to get band players?
Submitted by Tony Whittie, Glenmar Elementary School, Maryland
In order to play with a major orchestra like the Baltimore Symphony, you need to audition, just like you need to audition to be in a play or on a sports team. There is a lot of competition to get into an orchestra, and musicians work very hard to prepare for their auditions. The Baltimore Symphony also recruits musicians from around the world to play with them as guest artists. These artists are highly accomplished musicians who perform with orchestras all over the world.

How does it feel to play the violin? My sister played the violin and said it was very cool.
Submitted by Sabrina Vaccarino, Glenmar Elementary School, Middle River, MD
Instruments make sound by creating vibrations. These vibrations travel through the instrument and the air. Your ear translates these vibrations into sound. When you play the violin, or any other instrument, you can feel these vibrations moving through the body of the instrument.

How is sound produced on a clarinet?
Submitted by Rebecca at Cardijn College
A reed, made of bamboo, sits on the opening of the clarinet's mouthpiece. The reed side of the mouthpiece rests on the player's lower lip. When air is blown into the mouthpiece, the reed vibrates sending sound waves through the body of the instrument. These sound waves make the sound! The notes are changed by pressing down different keys on the body of the clarinet.

How many people watch the BSO every week?
Submitted by Randolph at Cedarmere Elementary School, Reisterstown, MD
The BSO is a full-time orchestra, performing year-round at the Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, throughout the state of Maryland and around the world. Thousands of people attend BSO concerts every year, though the number of people at each concerts varies depending on where the Orchestra is performing. In addition to the concerts, performances by the BSO are broadcast on the radio throughout the year, allowing even more people to hear the beautiful music our musicians make together.

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If you have questions that have not been answered yet, send them to us by filling out the form below and we'll add them to the list!