The Final Night Show - Day Five: 21st February 2014

After a day of many short rehearsals that had tinges of excitement and a little panic, it was time for the final night of Colab and the show at Blackheath Hall. 

We decided to show the Bruch Soundpainting for our OrchestraNEXT project. The sound painting had made our improvisation much more secure and creative and we had memorised the sections of the Bruch that we used.

Although the aim of the OrchestraNEXT project had not been the performance, nevertheless, the performance gave us a focus and I believe our collaboration on the night had never been better or stronger. We made group decisions, listened to each other and bounced ideas off each other, all without a conductor leading us. While it could be developed further to a more complex and interesting performance, the concert demonstrated that an orchestra can communicate without a conductor or words and that the future of orchestral playing could take an interesting route. 

The unusual piece created by sound painting definitely suggests that audiences could be more and more frequently entertained by unusual, non-traditional or experimental orchestral playing. Considering the limited time we had rehearsing as an orchestra, I felt the performance was a success.

The night changed into more of a party than a concert for the TLC orchestra. We played arrangements of a number of songs, including I Will Survive, Dancing Queen, Loving You, a Chaka Khan medley, You Sexy Thing, Its Raining Men and more! The strong sound of an orchestra, band and singers made a great collaboration and the audience seemingly had a great time singing and dancing along. 

It was a fantastic learning experience to play in a new style, to accompany singers, to play with a strong rhythm section, to play a lively gig and to accompany a loud, excited party of people! Dancing around in the TLC orchestra was the perfect way to end a week of exploring the different ways we approach orchestral playing that was thought provoking, educational and fun!

TLC Orchestra - Day Four: 20th February 2014

Today was a complete change of style! We were playing arrangements of 70s/80s disco music with a band and singers. The Barry White inspired Trinity Laban Colab Orchestra (also known as Love Unlimited) was a world away from the Mozart and Ravel rehearsals earlier in the week.

Listening to each other was much more difficult, the band line at the back made earplugs a necessity as well as playing with a mic attached to my flute for the first time! But we quickly got used to the challenges and enjoyed playing the loud, jazzy and often cheesy tunes. 

I learnt to adapt to a completely different style of rehearsal today. It had the feel of a modern pop gig however we all still wanted the standards to be just as high as a traditional orchestra. It was also a learning experience for the MDs who led the rehearsal of such a large group.

I felt today was a worthwhile change of pace from our few days of intensive classical rehearsals and the pieces benefitted from our ensemble's greatly improved unity and confidence. It was great to see everyone dancing around to the rhythm section and smiling. It was a challenge for many of us when one of the pieces demanded unison singing and clapping. People's confidence away from their instruments is often lower but we were all soon belting out the tune in true Colab spirit!

Tips from Simone Roggen from Spira Mirabilis on playing in a united orchestra without a conductor

We were sent some tips from Simone Roggen, a violinist in Spira Mirabilis. In a long and interesting email, here are some of the main points:

• Large ears! "You should be always listening to whats going on, especially on the other side of the orchestra. In spira everyone has a score, and has studied it before arriving at a project. During the rehearsal project we learn what instrument to focus on at what moment. It might not be the obvious melody instrument, but the bass, or rhythm section. In spira we do the work of a conductor in the rehearsals – that’s why we rehearse one piece for such a long time." Simone Roggen
• Articulation "In that sense, who has the focus of the orchestra at that one moment, knows they can be spontaneous because everyone is listening with big ears, and will hear how the note/phrase is shaped and will react accordingly. Every ensemble developes their own language -  way of playing, which with trust and time can create many moments of spontenaeity in concert. But only if everyone is really listening!" - 'large ears' and articulation is something we continued to work on throughout the project and these skills greatly improved. I believe this would get better with time as we have not been playing together for long
• Play with people's gestures rather than just the sound - we did a lot of movement exercises and this is something we would have to continue to practice if the project was extended.
• Try to listen to the orchestra from different positions and angles, to hear all the parts - we took this advice on the second day, moving around the orchestra while we had rests to look over each others shoulders before running back to our own parts!
• "And, as for everyone having an opinion and/or suggestion, well, from experience it doesn’t really work. At the beginning there was only talking and no playing." - This is interesting as it is a problem we were having too! Our solution has been to really be aware of the need to move onto playing. Spira Mirabilis have a concertmaster to  help this issue, I believe we would need some leader of this kind if we were to continue the project. Having a leader would also help our timing and communication.
• "So what we do these days is if you have a suggestion – you have to be very convinced and be able to back up your theory. If the discussion goes on for too long, or the rehearsals has ground  to a halt (sometimes the discussions are fascinating!) our concertmaster will take things into her hands. We all have an enormous respect for her (this is very important, to have someone you can really trust) and whatever which way she decides in the end, we play it like that."

It was really interesting and helpful to hear from a musician who has been playing in this way for a while, with a carefully chosen orchestra who work well together. It was interesting that they encountered similar problems. Although they also swap around parts to avoid the traditional ranking of an orchestra, they feel the need to have a leader. Perhaps the use of a leader is something we would have to consider were we to take our project further.

"...Spira is not your normal ensemble. It is unique, (and not a little weird) and has been built up over the years to find the right people who fit together. We are not paid,  we are there to learn. That in itself is the defining point i think." Simone Roggen

The Showing - Day Three: 19th February 2014

We used this morning to rehearse the Mozart, Ravel and Bruch Sound Painting ready to perform to an audience in the afternoon. The success of the project is not judged by the quality of the performance as the point is to explore how musicians approach playing and rehearsing in orchestras and ensembles, and how this might develop in the future. This is why we had an interesting discussion after the performance.

Our rehearsals were now more focused. I believe this is because we had already discussed ideas and interpretations and had got used to playing together. A greater knowledge of the music helped our communication and we had established that we needed to spend less time commenting between sections. Nevertheless, without a traditional conductor to keep us within the short time limit we ran over when rehearsing the Mozart.

While the performance went well and was enjoyable we did have some issues. One of these was the acoustics of the hall creating a greater need to use sight over just listening. Although we made an effort to move together, the lack of a permanent and prominent leader made timings hard. This is especially true of the rhythms at the beginning of the Mozart. The Bruch was more confident and secure now we were using sound painting to improvise as people were confident with the guidance and more willing to experiment with their ideas.

Reflection and discussion: 

We discussed how our experience of leading ourselves would affect our playing in the future, when in traditional orchestras. A good knowledge of the score and a strong level of preparation would enable a conductor to work with the orchestra's interpretation to create something of a higher standard. 

Approaching orchestras with an attitude of creating a piece together - for instance thinking "we are being Mozart's 39th" rather than merely thinking "I am playing the flute part" would also be a positive step for me to take from now on.

I believe I will approach orchestral playing with a greater awareness of the parts around me and the overall sound we are creating. This project has shown me the significance of good communication within an orchestra, which is something that should continue even with a conductor to guide us. 

Being aware of the phrases around the ones you individually play is something I believe we would work on if this project was extended. A beautifully played phrase might actually sound better if it wasn't phrased by the individual instrument and instead led into the next entry. I think that having a greater support of the other parts would've limited the amount of uncertain entries in the Ravel.

Flautist Jonathan Snowden stated that "the orchestra should be like a family", with parent figures who take the lead at different times and "always full of love". 

Day Two: 18th February 2014

We spent this morning learning and experimenting with Sound Painting:

Sound Painting is a form of directed improvisation devised by Walter Thompson. Particular symbols tell all or part of the orchestra to play certain things, however these are obviously interpreted differently by each player. Here is a recap of the signs we learnt at the end of the morning:

The directed improvisation created a more structured and unified sound, that also allowed the group to gain more confidence when improvising.  We broke into smaller groups to enable us to all practice directing. I found it challenging to be constantly thinking of new ideas when put under pressure. However I got used to the signs and it was a fun, interesting and new way to create music. Here is an example of lots of groups experimenting in the hall at the same time. Interesting, fun and a little chaotic!


We decided to use this sound painting to create more direction and structure in the Bruch. It provided us with more boundaries which, surprisingly, allowed the orchestra to be more creative while playing together.

We moved on to rehearse the Mozart and found ourselves stuck in dialogue about particular sections. We were doing nearly more talking than playing and were not getting anywhere fast! While some discussion is important for our self-led orchestra, we accomplished very little due to these discussions until we all made a conscious effort to push on with rehearsals. 

Rehearsals were now going well but as it was only the second day we were struggling to play as one completely in-sync ensemble. To help this communication issue we did a number of movement and eye contact activities. 

These activities varied throughout the day. We started away from the music, we walked around the space and did various communication and team building tasks. This included quickly moving to age order, finding someone with the same hand size or forming human 'sculptures' with a limited amount of contact with the ground. I initially doubted the relevance of these activities until we started rehearsing again. Our communication was improved, our confidence had grown and our ensemble more together.

The movement activities while playing the Ravel were particularly interesting. After continuing to play while our stands were moved around the room, we made an effort to keep continuous eye contact and watch other members of the orchestra throughout. This moved our focus from our own music to other players and the overall sound. I found myself in a circle with 4 violinists. This made me feel connected to other sections of the orchestra and I was particularly alert due to being apart from the wind section. 

'Always be looking at someone' - who knew playing in a circle could be so difficult!?

Being aware of the rest of the orchestra, of the overall sound and of the necessity of communication is a lesson that was repeated throughout this project. The movement activities were particularly effective at highlighting this and these are skills I will definitely be applying to traditional orchestra performances. 

The difficulties of playing together were intensified when we spread out in the hall, each of us finding the biggest and most interesting space we could! Our movements had to be more exaggerated, we had to listen more and were able to hear the orchestra from a new perspective. I think this led to a much more aware style of playing once we were all together again, although continuing to play while following a moving stand is something I still find difficult!

Spreading out in the huge hall:
orchestral playing that looks a lot like hide and seek

Day One: 17th February 2014

We found it extremely difficult to begin rehearsals of the Mozart Symphony without a conductor, it was a slow start to say the least! There was uncertainty over which direction we should go and who should lead it. However our seating plan of a circle, with an outer and inner line, created a friendly and united feel.

As the day went on, members of the ensemble moved into positions that best suited them, for example, the violins came closer together and the winds sat next to each another. This made me realise that the traditional seating of an orchestra is the best seating arrangement, as players sit where they can hear and see the parts they need. However the students in this orchestra have had years to get used to the traditional seating of orchestras and could have simply gravitated to the positions they were used to; perhaps we were seeking the comfort of the familiar to help us cope with the experimental nature of the project. By the end of the day we felt comfortable in this grouping. We were in the traditional sections of an orchestra without the strict hierarchy normally found. I think this allowed the players to feel comfortable and at ease, which perhaps gave them a sense of freedom and a feeling of independence.

One of the most difficult things was to begin the piece at the same time and in the same tempo! This improved as the day went on as we learnt to feel the pulse and move together. 

I feel this was the most important lesson of the day as everyone in the orchestra became more aware of all the other players and the overall sound we were trying to make as a single unit. After a lot of work on beginning together we were even able to accomplish this with our eyes closed! This demonstrates that as musicians we don't even one of our basic senses, let alone a conductor, to communicate and play the music as a united ensemble.

After initial rehearsals we looked at the Bruch Adagio on Celtic Melodies. The plan is to use this piece to explore how members of an orchestra can be creative, especially through improvising and expanding ideas. After an initial play through we chose sections for free improvisation - players held drones while others chose to improvise in the current key. I found it interesting to have the freedom to test out ideas and bounce them off fellow musicians but it often sounded messy and uncertain. Some instruments became lost in the texture while those loud and confident ones dominated. We decided to put the improvisations into different sections such as one for harps, for upper strings and for wind.

Unfortunately we were struggling to improvise confidently and creatively. It was obvious that we were classical musicians in an orchestral setting who were too used to the boundaries of a traditional orchestra. This issue led to improvising activities in which everyone actively took part. This began just clapping different rhythms, encouraging us to communicate, listen and loosen up. We then moved this to instruments and developed it from there. Eventually walking round the room, freely improvising ideas and bouncing thoughts off each other.

Although we hadn't yet found a set structure for the Bruch at that stage, we were all a lot more comfortable and confident with improvising. I believe improving and expanding upon ideas could be used within standard orchestras, encouraging players to be more creative and musical together.

What to expect... OrchestraNEXT Trinity Laban Colab Project

The main part of this OrchestraNEXT project is playing without a conductor, and all taking a shared responsibility without the hierarchal structure of a traditional orchestra. In preparation for this we each studied a score of Mozart's Symphony 39 and Ravel's Pavane in advance, not only to encourage a greater awareness when playing but so, as players, we could contribute ideas to the rehearsal.

An idea of how such a rehearsal would work can be seen with Spira Mirabilis, an orchestra that work without a conductor and in the spirit of a large chamber ensemble. We watched a short clip of their rehearsal of Schumann 'Spring' for inspiration.

Clearly they are used to working and performing together as a united ensemble but we hope to explore the possibilities and challenges that this style of orchestral playing can create in the coming week.