English Across The Curriculum

Orchestra - Exercises 

1 Answer the following questions in your own words !

What kind of music do orchestras play?_____________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

Name a few famous orchestras :___________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

How many musicians can an orchestra have ?________________________________________________

What is a score ?________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

What special role does the leading first violinist have ?________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

Name at least four string instruments :_____________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

Which woodwind instruments have the lowest tones ?_________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

Name a few percussion instruments :_______________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

What must the conductor do before the concert begins ?______________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

What does he often have in his hand ?______________________________________________________

Where does the word “orchestra” come from ?_______________________________________________

When and where did the first orchestras play ?_______________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

Which composers were famous for writing classical symphonies ?_ ______________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

What is a chamber orchestra ?_____________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________
English Across The Curriculum

Orchestra - Exercises 

2 Match the Words with the definitions

long piece of music, usually in four parts,

A conductor
written for an orchestra
when all the musicians practise before a per-
B note
formance

C professional person who writes music

D symphony very sharp, high tone ; not nice to hear

to do something so long that you can do it

E cymbal
very well
someone who stands in front of a group of
F harp
musicians and directs them
stick with which the conductor directs the
G piercing
orchestra

H rehearsal different

musical instrument in the form of a thin round

I rattle
metal plate which you hit

J switch to do something for money

small group of musicians who play classical

K perfect
music together

L stage small instrument that looks like a flute

large instrument with strings that you play

M composer
with your fingers
high area of a hall or theatre on which the
N chamber orchestra
musicians sit when they perform

O various to shake quickly many times

a symbol on paper that stands for a musical

P piccolo
sound

Q baton change
English Across The Curriculum

Orchestra - Exercises 

3 Finish the sentences in a meaningful way !

The first orchestras were organized________________________________________________________

Before the concert the conductor__________________________________________________________

The woodwind section consists of__________________________________________________________

The concertmaster_ _____________________________________________________________________

Orchestras give concerts but also__________________________________________________________

Mozart and Haydn_______________________________________________________________________

Each musician only sees__________________________________________________________________

4 True or False ?

T F

Orchestras always perform with a group of singers.

In a score each musician sees the notes of the players in his section.

Chamber orchestras are smaller than symphony orchestras.

The string section of an orchestra only consists of violins .

Cellos and string basses play lower sounds.

The concertmaster helps the other musicians tune their instruments.

Percussion instruments are those that you can hit, rattle or shake.

Pianos are always a part of the percussion section.

The conductor directs the orchestra with cymbals.

The word orchestra comes from ancient Greece.

Stravinski and Strauss perfected the symphony in the late 1700s.

English Across The Curriculum

Orchestra - Exercises 

5 Write about the four parts of an orchestra ! Fill the information into
the boxes !
 English Across The Curriculum

Orchestra - Exercises 

6 Crossword

3 4 5

6 7

9 10

11

12

13

14

15 16

AcrossCreated with EclipseCrossword — www.eclipsecrossword.com

1. woodwind instrument with a low tone
3. person who writes music
6. famous musician that perfected the sym-
phony
9. large instrument with strings that you play
with your fingers
11. very important instrument in the string sec-
tion
14. a stick that the conductor has in his hands
15. very large instrument that you hit
16. to shake quickly many times
Down
1. composer of the early 1700s
2. instrument you play by hitting small metal
plates
4. instruments that you can hit, rattle or
shake
5. long piece of music, usually written in four
parts for an orchestra
7. large instrument in the brass section
8. someone who stands in front of an orches-
tra and directs it
10. when all the musicians practise before a
performance
12. higher area of a theatre or hall on which
musicians sit when they perform
13. small woodwind instrument with a high
tone
English Across The Curriculum

Orchestra - Exercises 

7 Find 12 musical instruments in the Grid below () and mark

them !

X K K O D M G E H O G N
C C A F F E M L A R C X

G J K T V M V I O L I N
B X G R E U G G A S M V

B X L U Z K Y R A C F A

O L S M H L I C E L L O

P X J P Y N C Y I U U K
Q S S E E D X M B L T N

J B X T R O M B O N E B

O J T U B A H A R P H O
H E M O T H A L Q B D G
Q O E E B A S S O O N S
 English Across The Curriculum

Orchestra - Exercises 

8 Fill in the names of the instruments !

Bassoon Flute String Bass

Cymbals French horn Trumpet
Drum Kettledrum Violin