size of orchestra & little known orchestra works

[jonjon]

What size orchestra i.e what string strength would Beethoven have used? I am particularly interested in the first three symphonies.

Also am looking for Beethoven orchestral works which are not often heard but deserve a hearing. "Onomastica" mentioned in an earlier topic is a case in point

[Hofrat]

Originally posted by jonjon:
What size orchestra i.e what string strength would Beethoven have used? I am particularly interested in the first three symphonies.

Also am looking for Beethoven orchestral works which are not often heard but deserve a hearing. "Onomastica" mentioned in an earlier topic is a case in point

The size of the royal Vienna court orchestra in 1805 (the time of Eroica) was 35 players. That is about 22 string players. Other orchestras at that time were somewhat larger. The Swedish court orchestra at that time numbered 65 players making it one of the largest contemporary European orchestras.


Hofrat

[Peter]

Originally posted by jonjon:
What size orchestra i.e what string strength would Beethoven have used? I am particularly interested in the first three symphonies.

Also am looking for Beethoven orchestral works which are not often heard but deserve a hearing. "Onomastica" mentioned in an earlier topic is a case in point

The strings traditionally formed the backbone of the orchestra, and the number of string players for a given performance in Beethoven's day depended on the amount of space and the numbers of players available. For the first private performance of the Eroica at Prince Lobkowitz's palace in 1804 a large string section would not have been possible. In fact for this performance there were only 3 first violins, 3 second violins, 2 violas, 2 cellos and 3 double basses - The 1808 performance used 56 musicians. Mozart enthused about the Mannheim orchestra to his father which had a string section of 30 musicians - that was in 1777.




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'Man know thyself'

[Michael]

Originally posted by jonjon:

Also am looking for Beethoven orchestral works which are not often heard but deserve a hearing. "Onomastica" mentioned in an earlier topic is a case in point

Beethoven's ballet "The Creatures of Prometheus" is strangely neglected, even though it contains some fine music.

Michael