Editing Musical ensemble

{{Short description|Instrumental and/or vocal music group}}
{{Redirect|Music group}}
{{Multiple issues|
{{more citations needed|date=January 2010}}
{{original research|date=February 2010}}
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[[File:Jazzing orchestra 1921.png|thumb|The King & Carter Jazzing Orchestra photographed in Houston, Texas, January 1921]]
[[File:Orquesta Filarmonica de Jalisco.jpg|thumb|The [[Jalisco Philarmonic Orchestra|Jalisco Philharmonic Orchestral]] is an example of a large [[classical music|classical]] musical ensemble.]]
[[File:Porin Työväenyhdistyksen soittokunta.jpg|thumb|Pori Worker's Society Brass Band in the 1920s in [[Pori]], Finland]]

A '''musical ensemble''', also known as a '''music group''', '''musical group''', or a '''band''' is a group of people who perform [[Instrumental music|instrumental]] and/or [[vocal music]], with the ensemble typically known by a distinct name. Some music ensembles consist solely of instrumentalists, such as the [[jazz quartet]] or the [[orchestra]]. Other music ensembles consist solely of singers, such as [[choir]]s and [[doo wop|doo-wop]] groups. In both [[popular music]] and [[classical music]], there are ensembles in which both instrumentalists and singers perform, such as the [[Band (rock and pop)|rock band]] or the Baroque chamber group for [[basso continuo]] ([[harpsichord]] and [[cello]]) and one or more singers. In [[classical music]], trios or quartets either blend the sounds of [[musical instrument]] families (such as [[piano]], [[strings (music)|strings]], and [[wind instrument]]s) or group instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles (e.g., [[string quartet]]) or wind ensembles (e.g., [[wind quintet]]). Some ensembles blend the sounds of a variety of instrument families, such as the [[orchestra]], which uses a [[string section]], [[brass instrument]]s, [[woodwind]]s, and [[percussion instrument]]s, or the [[concert band]], which uses brass, woodwinds, and percussion. 
In jazz ensembles or combos, the instruments typically include wind instruments (one or more [[saxophone]]s, [[trumpet]]s, etc.), one or two chordal "comping" instruments ([[electric guitar]], [[acoustic guitar]], piano, or [[Hammond organ]]), a [[bass instrument]] ([[bass guitar]] or [[double bass]]), and a drummer or percussionist. Jazz ensembles may be solely instrumental, or they may consist of a group of instruments accompanying one or more singers. In rock and pop ensembles, usually called [[Band (rock and pop)|rock bands]] or pop bands, there are usually guitars and keyboards (piano, electric piano, [[Hammond organ]], [[synthesizer]], etc.), one or more singers, and a [[rhythm section]] made up of a [[bass guitar]] and [[drum kit]].

Music ensembles typically have a leader. In jazz bands, rock and pop groups, and similar ensembles, this is the [[band leader]]. In classical music, orchestras, concert bands, and choirs are led by a [[conducting|conductor]]. In orchestra, the [[concertmaster]] (principal first violin player) is the instrumentalist leader of the orchestra. In orchestras, the individual sections also have leaders, typically called the "principal" of the section (e.g., the leader of the viola section is called the "principal viola"). Conductors are also used in [[jazz]] [[big band]]s and in some very large rock or pop ensembles (e.g., a rock concert that includes a [[string section]], a [[horn section]], and a [[choir]] that accompanies a rock band's performance).

==Classical chamber music==
[[File:KneiselQuartet.jpg|thumb|The [[Kneisel quartet|Kneisel String Quartet]], led by Franz Kneisel, is an example of chamber music. This American ensemble debuted [[Dvořák]]'s American Quartet, Opus 96 (photographed {{c.|1891}}.)]]
[[File:IranianMusicGroup.jpg|thumb|An [[Iran]]ian musical ensemble, painted by [[Kamal-ol-molk]] in 1886]]

In Western classical music, smaller ensembles are called [[chamber music]] ensembles.  The terms [[Duet|duo]], [[trio (music)|trio]], [[quartet]], [[quintet]], [[sextet]], [[septet]], [[octet (music)|octet]], [[nonet (music)|nonet]], and [[decet (music)|decet]] describe groups of two up to ten musicians, respectively. A group of eleven musicians, such as found in ''[[The Carnival of the Animals]]'', is called an ''undecet'', and a group of twelve is called a ''[[duodecet]]'' (see [[Latin numerical prefixes]]). A soloist playing unaccompanied (e.g., a pianist playing a solo piano piece or a cellist playing a [[Bach suite for unaccompanied cello]]) is not an ensemble because it only contains one musician.

===Four parts===
{{main|Quartet}}

====Strings====
A [[string quartet]] consists of two [[violin]]s, a [[viola]], and a [[cello]]. There is a vast body of music written for string quartets, making it an important genre in [[classical music]].

====Wind====
A woodwind quartet usually features a [[flute]], an [[oboe]], a [[clarinet]], and a [[bassoon]]. A brass quartet features two [[trumpets]], a [[trombone]], and a [[tuba]] (or [[French horn|French horn (more commonly known as "horn")]]). A saxophone quartet consists of a [[soprano saxophone]], an [[alto saxophone]], a [[tenor saxophone]], and a [[baritone saxophone]].

===Five parts===
{{Main|Quintet}}
The string ''quintet'' is a common type of group. It is similar to the string quartet, but with an additional viola, cello, or more rarely, the addition of a double bass. Terms such as "[[piano quintet]]" or "clarinet quintet" frequently refer to a string quartet ''plus'' a fifth instrument. [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart|Mozart]]'s [[Clarinet Quintet (Mozart)|Clarinet Quintet]] is similarly a piece written for an ensemble consisting of two violins, a viola, a cello, and a clarinet, the last being the exceptional addition to a "normal" string quartet.{{Citation needed|date=February 2020}}

Some other quintets in classical music are the [[wind quintet]], usually consisting of flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, and horn; the [[brass quintet]], consisting of two trumpets, one horn, a trombone, and a tuba; and the reed quintet, consisting of an oboe, a soprano clarinet, a saxophone, a bass clarinet, and a bassoon.<ref>{{Cite web |first=Kristine |last=Thompson |date=April 2021 |title=Blending the old and the new: the Sequoia Reed Quintet |url=https://www.rochester.edu/adv/eastman-centennial/blending-the-old-and-the-new-the-sequoia-reed-quintet/ |access-date=2022-07-31 |website=Eastman Centennial |language=en-US}}</ref>

===Six or more instruments===
{{Main|Orchestra|Concert band}}
[[File:London Barbican Hall LSO Haitink.jpg|thumb|[[London Symphony Orchestra]], [[Barbican Hall]], conducted by [[Bernard Haitink]]]]
[[File:Concert Band.jpg|thumb|225x225px|The Indiana Wind Symphony [[concert band]]]]

Classical chamber ensembles of six (sextet), seven (septet), or eight musicians (octet) are fairly common; the use of latinate terms for larger groups is rare, except for the nonet (nine musicians). In most cases, a larger classical group is referred to as an orchestra of some type or a concert band. A small orchestra with fifteen to thirty members (violins, violas, four cellos, two or three double basses, and several woodwind or brass instruments) is called a [[chamber orchestra]]. A [[Sinfonietta (orchestra)|sinfonietta]] usually denotes a somewhat smaller orchestra (though still not a chamber orchestra). Larger orchestras are called [[symphony]] orchestras (see below) or philharmonic orchestras.<ref>{{cite book |last= Raynor |first= Henry |title= The Orchestra: a history |publisher= [[Charles Scribner's Sons|Scribner]] |year= 1978 |isbn= 0-684-15535-4 |page={{Page needed|date=March 2012}}}}</ref>

A [[pops orchestra]] is an orchestra that mainly performs light classical music (often in abbreviated, simplified arrangements) and orchestral [[arrangement]]s and [[medley (music)|medleys]] of popular jazz, music theater, or pop music songs.{{Clarify|date=July 2016}}<!--How is such an orchestra different from a symphony orchestra which, after all, might equally specialize in one repertory or another?--> A [[string orchestra]] has only string instruments, i.e., violins, violas, cellos, and double basses.

A [[symphony orchestra]] is an ensemble usually comprising at least thirty musicians; the number of players is typically between fifty and ninety-five and may exceed one hundred.  A symphony orchestra is divided into families of instruments. In the string family, there are sections of violins (I and II), violas, cellos (often eight), and basses (often from six to eight).  The standard [[woodwind section]] consists of flutes (one doubling piccolo), oboes (one doubling English horn), soprano clarinets (one doubling bass clarinet), and bassoons (one doubling contrabassoon). The standard [[brass section]] consists of horns, trumpets, trombones, and tuba. The [[percussion section]] includes the [[timpani]], [[bass drum]], [[snare drum]], and any other percussion instruments called for in a score (e.g., triangle, [[glockenspiel]], chimes, cymbals, wood blocks, etc.). In [[Baroque music]] (1600–1750) and music from the early [[Classical period music]] (1750–1820), the percussion parts in orchestral works may only include timpani.{{Clarify|date=July 2016}}<!--"May" only include timpani? Does this mean other percussion instruments occur, but are not mandatory, or that if percussion appears at all, it will be solely timpani?-->

A [[wind orchestra]] or [[concert band]] is a large classical ensemble generally made up of between 40 and 70 musicians from the woodwind, brass, and percussion families, along with the double bass. The concert band has a larger number and variety of wind instruments than the symphony orchestra but does not have a string section (although a single [[double bass]] is common in concert bands). The woodwind section of a concert band consists of piccolo, flutes, oboes (one doubling English horn), bassoons (one doubling contrabassoon), soprano clarinets (one doubling E{{music|flat}} clarinet, one doubling alto clarinet), bass clarinets (one doubling contrabass clarinet or contra-alto clarinet), alto saxophones (one doubling soprano saxophone), tenor saxophone, and baritone saxophone. The brass section consists of horns, trumpets or cornets, trombones, euphoniums, and tubas. The percussion section consists of the timpani, bass drum, snare drum, and any other percussion instruments called for in a score (e.g., triangle, glockenspiel, chimes, cymbals, wood blocks, etc.).

Less well known is the large symphonic [[accordion|accordion orchestra]]. Typically, it includes between 50 and 100 musicians whose [[free-bass system|free-bass]] instruments are individually re-tuned in order to recreate the full range of orchestral sounds and timbers required for the performance of traditional Western classical music.<ref>{{cite book | last=Jacobson | first=Marion | title=Squeeze This! | publisher=University of Illinois Press | publication-place=Urbana, Ill | date=2012-03-15 | isbn=978-0-252-09385-2 | page=78-80 | url = https://google.com/books?id=bPhXe_qNy5QC&pg=PA78}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | last=Jacobson | first=Marion S. | title=Searching for Rockordion: The Changing Image of the Accordion in America | journal=American Music | publisher=University of Illinois Press | volume=25 | issue=2 | year=2007 | issn=07344392 | jstor=40071656 | pages=216–247 | url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/40071656 | access-date=2025-04-12}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last=Simonett | first=Helena | title=The Accordion in the Americas | publisher=University of Illinois Press | publication-place=Urbana | date=2012-10-16 | isbn=978-0-252-09432-3 | page=169 | url = https://www.google.com/books?id=uJOaVxympCEC&pg=PA169&printsec=frontcover}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last=Martin | first=Andrew R. | last2=Ph.D. | first2=Matthew Mihalka | title=Music around the World | publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing USA | publication-place=Santa Barbara | date=2020-09-08 | isbn=978-1-61069-499-5 | page=3 | url = https://www.google.com/books?id=JOTNEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA3&printsec=frontcover}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title=Pietro Deiro Presents The Accordion Orchestra | work = The Billboard | publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc. | date=1960-06-27 | url=https://google.com/books?id=hR8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA33 | page=33}}</ref>

When orchestras perform [[baroque music]] (from the 17th century and early 18th century), they may also use a [[harpsichord]] or [[pipe organ]], to play the [[Bass continuo|continuo]] part. When orchestras perform Romantic-era music (from the 19th century), they may also use [[harp]]s or unusual instruments such as the [[wind machine]] or [[cannon]]s. When orchestras perform music from the 20th century or the 21st century, occasionally instruments such as electric guitar, [[theremin]], or even an electronic synthesizer may be used.

== Vocal group ==
{{See also|List of vocal groups}}
A '''vocal group''' is a performing ensemble of [[vocalists]] who [[Singing|sing]] and harmonize together. The first well-known vocals groups emerged in the 19th century, and the style had reached widespread popularity by the 1940s.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Warner |first1=Jay |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mTM_9JTeoMIC&pg=PR1 |title=American Singing Groups: A History from 1940s to Today |date=2006 |publisher=Hal Leonard Corp |isbn=9780634099786 |edition=1st |location=Milwaukee |pages=1–3}}</ref>

Vocal groups can come in several different forms, including:<ref>{{Cite web |last=Chilton |first=Martin |date=2022-08-03 |title=Pitch Perfect: A History Of Vocal Groups |url=https://www.udiscovermusic.com/in-depth-features/pitch-perfect-history-vocal-groups/ |access-date=2022-11-28 |website=uDiscover Music |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Based on genders ===

* [[Boys' choir]] &ndash; vocal group of boys who have yet to begin puberty 
* [[Boy band]] – vocal group consisting of (young) males
* [[Girl group]] – vocal group consisting of (young) females
* [[Co-ed group]] – vocal group consisting of both males and females, typically in their teens or early twenties

=== Based on project type ===

* Sub-unit – a group that is descended from the main group, with smaller number of members. Usually, all the members are from the main group.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Anoc |first=Aimee |title=What is a sub-unit in K-pop and why is this a buzzword online? |url=https://www.gmanetwork.com/entertainment/showbiznews/news/98231/what-is-a-sub-unit-in-k-pop-and-why-is-this-a-buzzword-online/story |access-date=2024-02-13 |website=www.gmanetwork.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-07-03 |title=8 K-Pop Sub-Units So Brilliant That We Want More |url=https://www.soompi.com/article/1532555wpp/8-k-pop-sub-units-so-brilliant-that-we-want-more |access-date=2024-02-13 |website=Soompi |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-11-28 |title=History of K-Pop: Sub-Units |url=https://thekrazemag.com/latest-updates/2021/11/28/history-of-k-pop-sub-units |access-date=2024-02-13 |website=The Kraze |language=en-US}}</ref>
* [[Supergroup (music)|Supergroup]] – a musical group formed with members who are already successful as solo artists or as members of other successful groups.

=== Others ===

* [[Choir]] – a group of voices. By analogy, sometimes a group of similar instruments in a symphony orchestra is referred to as a choir. For example, the woodwind instruments of a symphony orchestra could be called the woodwind choir.
* [[Doo-wop]] group
* [[Vocal quartet]] (as well as vocal [[Trio (music)|trios]] and [[quintet]]s)
** [[Barbershop quartet]] – [[a cappella]] [[close-harmony]] vocal group
** [[Gospel quartet]]

==Other western musical ensembles==
{{Unreferenced section|date=February 2020}}

A group that plays [[popular music]] or [[military music]] is usually called a band; a [[Drum and bugle corps (modern)|drum and bugle corps]] is a type of the latter. These bands perform a wide range of music, ranging from arrangements of jazz orchestral, or popular music to military-style marches. Drum corps perform on brass and percussion instruments only. Drum and Bugle Corps incorporate costumes, hats, and pageantry in their performances.

Other band types include:
*[[Brass band]]s: groups consisting of around 30 brass and percussion players;
*[[Corps of drums]], [[Fife and drum]]s, [[Pipe band]]s and [[Drum and bugle corps (modern)|Drum and bugle corps]] are mostly ceremonial bands
*[[Jug band]]s;
*[[Marching band]]s and [[military band]]s, dating back to the [[Ottoman military band]]s.
*Mexican [[Mariachi]] groups typically consist of at least two violins, two trumpets, one [[Classical guitar|Spanish guitar]], one [[vihuela]] (a high-pitched, five-string guitar), and one [[Guitarrón mexicano|Guitarrón]] (a Mexican acoustic bass that is roughly guitar-shaped), and one or more singers.
*Mexican [[banda music|banda]] groups
* [[String band]]s

See [[List of musical band types]] for more.

==Role of women==
[[File:Suzi Quatro plays a bass guitar while she sings at AIS Arena.jpg|thumb|right|140px|[[Suzi Quatro]] is a singer, bassist and bandleader. When she launched her career in 1973, she was one of the few prominent women instrumentalists and bandleaders in rock music]]
{{Main|Girl group|All-female band}}
Women have a high prominence in many [[popular music]] styles as singers. However, professional women instrumentalists are uncommon in popular music, especially in rock genres such as [[heavy metal music|heavy metal]]. "[P]laying in a band is largely a male homosocial activity, that is, learning to play in a band is largely a peer-based... experience, shaped by existing sex-segregated friendship networks."<ref>{{cite journal |first1=Julian |last1=Schaap |first2=Pauwke |last2=Berkers |title=Grunting Alone? Online Gender Inequality in Extreme Metal Music |journal=IASPM Journal |volume=4 |issue=1 |year=2014 |pages=101–102|doi=10.5429/2079-3871(2014)v4i1.8en |doi-access=free |hdl=1765/51580 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> As well, rock music "...is often defined as a form of male rebellion vis-à-vis female bedroom culture."<ref name="Pauwke Berkers 2014 p. 102">{{cite journal |first1=Julian |last1=Schaap |first2=Pauwke |last2=Berkers |title=Grunting Alone? Online Gender Inequality in Extreme Metal Music |journal=IASPM Journal |volume=4 |issue=1 |year=2014 |page=102|doi=10.5429/2079-3871(2014)v4i1.8en |doi-access=free |hdl=1765/51580 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> In popular music, there has been a gendered "distinction between public (male) and private (female) participation" in music.<ref name="Pauwke Berkers 2014 p. 102"/> "[S]everal scholars have argued that men exclude women from bands or the bands' rehearsals, recordings, performances, and other social activities."<ref name="Pauwke Berkers 2014 p. 104">{{cite journal |first1=Julian |last1=Schaap |first2=Pauwke |last2=Berkers |title=Grunting Alone? Online Gender Inequality in Extreme Metal Music |journal=IASPM Journal |volume=4 |issue=1 |year=2014 |page=104|doi=10.5429/2079-3871(2014)v4i1.8en |doi-access=free |hdl=1765/51580 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> "Women are mainly regarded as passive and private consumers of allegedly slick, prefabricated – hence, inferior – pop music..., excluding them from participating as high-status rock musicians."<ref name="Pauwke Berkers 2014 p. 104"/> One of the reasons that there are rarely mixed gender bands is that "bands operate as tight-knit units in which homosocial solidarity – social bonds between people of the same sex... – plays a crucial role."<ref name="Pauwke Berkers 2014 p. 104"/> In the 1960s pop music scene, "[s]inging was sometimes an acceptable pastime for a girl, but playing an instrument...simply wasn't done."<ref name="rebeatmag.com">{{cite magazine |first=Erika |last=White |url=http://www.rebeatmag.com/music-history-primer-3-pioneering-female-songwriters-of-the-60s/ |title=Music History Primer: 3 Pioneering Female Songwriters of the '60s |magazine=REBEAT Magazine |date=2015-01-28 |access-date=2016-01-20 |archive-date=2015-12-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222152836/http://www.rebeatmag.com/music-history-primer-3-pioneering-female-songwriters-of-the-60s/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

"The rebellion of rock music was largely a male rebellion; the women—often, in the 1950s and '60s, girls in their teens—in rock usually sang songs as personæ utterly dependent on their macho boyfriends..."<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Oglesbee |first=Frank W. |date=June 1999 |title=Suzi Quatro: A prototype in the archsheology of rock |url=http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/03007769908591731 |journal=Popular Music and Society |volume=23 |issue=2 |pages=29–39 |doi=10.1080/03007769908591731 |issn=0300-7766|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Philip Auslander says that "Although there were many women in rock by the late 1960s, most performed only as singers, a traditionally feminine position in popular music." Though some women played instruments in American [[all-female bands|all-female garage rock bands]], none of these bands achieved more than regional success. So they "did not provide viable templates for women's on-going participation in rock".<ref name="I Wanna Be Your Man">
{{cite journal
 |last         = Auslander
 |first        = Philip
 |date         = 28 January 2004
 |title        = I Wanna Be Your Man: Suzi Quatro's musical androgyny
 |journal      = Popular Music
 |volume       = 23
 |issue        = 1
 |pages        = 1–16
 |location     = United Kingdom
 |publisher    = [[Cambridge University Press]]
 |doi          = 10.1017/S0261143004000030
 |s2cid = 191508078
 |access-date   = 25 April 2012
 |url          = http://lmc.gatech.edu/~auslander/publications/quatro.pdf
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20130524032035/http://lmc.gatech.edu/~auslander/publications/quatro.pdf
 |archive-date = 24 May 2013
 |url-status     = dead
 |df           = dmy-all
}}</ref>{{rp|2–3}} About the gender composition of [[Heavy metal music|heavy metal bands]], it has been said that "[h]eavy metal performers are almost exclusively male"<ref name="Brake 1990 87–91">{{cite book |last=Brake |first=Mike |editor1-last=Frith |editor1-first=Simon |editor2-last=Goodwin  |editor2-first=Andrew  |title=On Record: Rock, Pop and the Written Word |url=https://archive.org/details/onrecordrockpopw00frit_710 |url-access=limited |publisher=Routledge |date=1990  |pages=[https://archive.org/details/onrecordrockpopw00frit_710/page/n101 87]–91 |chapter=Heavy Metal Culture, Masculinity and Iconography }}</ref> "...[a]t least until the mid-1980s"<ref>{{cite book |last=Walser |first=Robert |date=1993 |title=Running with the Devil:Power, Gender and Madness in Heavy Metal Music |publisher=Wesleyan University Press |page=76 }}</ref> apart from "...exceptions such as [[Girlschool]]".<ref name="Brake 1990 87–91"/> However, "...now [in the 2010s] maybe more than ever–strong metal women have put up their dukes and got down to it,"<ref>{{cite journal |last=Eddy |first=Chuck |date=1 July 2011 |title=Women of Metal |journal=Spin |publisher=SpinMedia Group}}</ref> "carv[ing] out a considerable place for [them]selves".<ref>{{cite news |last=Kelly |first=Kim |date=17 January 2013 |title=Queens of noise: heavy metal encourages heavy-hitting women |newspaper=The Telegraph}}</ref>
When [[Suzi Quatro]] emerged in 1973, "no other prominent female musician worked in rock simultaneously as a singer, instrumentalist, songwriter, and bandleader."<ref name="I Wanna Be Your Man" />{{rp|2}} According to Auslander, she was "kicking down the male door in rock and roll and proving that a female ''musician''&nbsp;... and this is a point I am extremely concerned about&nbsp;... could play as well if not better than the boys".<ref name="I Wanna Be Your Man" />{{rp|3}}

==See also==
{{Portal|Music}}
*[[Band (rock and pop)]]
*[[All-female band]]
*[[Boy band]]
*[[Girl group]]
*[[Pop duo]]
*[[Live band karaoke]]
*[[Music industry]]
*[[Percussion ensemble]]
*[[Musical collective]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Musical groups}}
*{{NYPL Digital Gallery keyword|music|Music}}
* {{cite encyclopedia|url=https://thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/bands-emc|title=Music Bands|author=Helmut Kallmann|author-link=Helmut Kallmann|author2=Patricia Wardrop|author3=Jack Kopstein|author4=Barclay Mcmillan|encyclopedia=[[Encyclopedia of Music in Canada ]]|publisher=[[Historica Canada]]|date=December 16, 2013|access-date=August 19, 2019}}

{{Musical ensembles}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Musical groups| ]]