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Principles of Orchestration
Author(s): Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (Author)
- Publisher: Dover Publications
- Publication Date: June 1, 1964
- Edition: Revised ed.
- Language: English
- Print length: 512 pages
- ISBN-10: 0486212661
- ISBN-13: 9780486212661
Book Description
This book is an essential guide for music majors looking to develop their orchestration skills and create imaginative and brilliant orchestral compositions.
“To orchestrate is to create, and this cannot be taught,” wrote Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov, the great Russian composer whose genius for brilliant, highly colored orchestration is unsurpassed. In this affordable paperback reprint of an influential work of music theory, Rimsky-Korsakov, the great classical orchestrator, provides fundamentals of tonal resonance, progression of parts, voice and orchestra, tutti effects, and much more. This major document includes 330 pages of musical excerpts and extracts from Rimsky-Korsakov’s 1891 draft and final versions of his Preface.
“To orchestrate is to create, and this cannot be taught,” wrote Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov, the great Russian composer whose genius for brilliant, highly colored orchestration is unsurpassed. In this affordable paperback reprint of an influential work of music theory, Rimsky-Korsakov, the great classical orchestrator, provides fundamentals of tonal resonance, progression of parts, voice and orchestra, tutti effects, and much more. This major document includes 330 pages of musical excerpts and extracts from Rimsky-Korsakov’s 1891 draft and final versions of his Preface.
- Comprehensive Learning: Principles of Orchestration provides a comprehensive exploration of orchestration principles, covering topics such as tonal resonance, orchestral combination, and achieving specific tone qualities/instrument timbres.
- Practical Illustrations: The book includes over 330 pages of musical examples and exercises from Rimsky-Korsakov’s own works, allowing students to see practical applications of the discussed techniques and concepts.
- Historical Perspective: Rimsky-Korsakov draws on his experience as a composer and conductor to provide historical context and insights into the evolution of orchestral techniques.
- Systematic Arrangement: The material in the book is systematically arranged according to each constituent of the orchestra, making it easy for students to study and understand the role of different instruments in orchestration.
- Chapter Topics: Inside, you’ll find a general review of orchestral groups and musical instruments – string, wind, and percussion; the effect of harmony and melody on individual groups and their impact on different combinations of groups; the composition of the orchestra and other ways of orchestrating the same music; a supplement on voices: solo and combined with the orchestra; voices in duets, trios, quartets, chorus, and more.
- Technical Guidance: Rimsky-Korsakov offers technical guidance on various orchestration topics, including chord progression and achieving specific tone qualities, helping students develop their orchestration skills.
- Valuable Resource: “Principles of Orchestration” is invaluable for any music student looking to enhance their understanding of orchestration principles and techniques.
- Classic and Timeless: Written by a major composer, this book is considered a classic in orchestration and continues to be highly regarded for its wealth of musical examples and systematic approach.
Principles of Orchestration by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov is an invaluable resource for any music major. With its wealth of musical examples and systematic approach, this book offers a comprehensive exploration of orchestration principles, providing students with the knowledge and techniques necessary to create extraordinary orchestral compositions.
Editorial Reviews
From the Back Cover
“To orchestrate is to create, and this cannot be taught,” wrote Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov, the great Russian composer whose genius for brilliant, highly colored orchestration is unsurpassed. But invention, in all art, is closely allied to technique, and technique can be taught. This book, therefore, which differs from most other texts on the subject because of its tremendous wealth of musical examples and its systematic arrangement of material according to each constituent of the orchestra, will undoubtedly be of value to any music student. It is a music classic, perhaps the only book on classical orchestration written by a major composer.
In it, the composer aims to provide the reader with the fundamental principles of modern orchestration from the standpoint of brilliance and imagination, and he devotes considerable space to the study of tonal resonance and orchestral combination. In his course, he demonstrates such things as how to produce a good-sounding chord of certain tone-quality, uniformly distributed; how to detach a melody from its harmonic setting; correct progression of parts; and other similar problems.
The first chapter is a general review of orchestral groups, with an instrument-by-instrument breakdown and material on such technical questions as fingering, range, emission of sound, etc. There follows two chapters on melody and harmony in strings, winds, brasses, and combined groups. Chapter IV, Composition of the Orchestra, covers different ways of orchestrating the same music; effects that can be achieved with full tutti; tutti in winds, tutti pizzicato, soli in the strings, etc.; chords; progressions; and so on. The last two chapters deal with opera and include discussion of solo and choral accompaniment, instruments on stage or in the wings, technical terms, soloists (range, register, vocalization, vowels, etc.), voices in combination, and choral singing.
Immediately following this text are some 330 pages of musical examples drawn from “Sheherazade,” the “Antar Symphony,” “Capriccio Espagnol,” “Sadko,” “Ivan the Terrible,” “Le Coq d’Or,” “Mlada,” “The Tsar’s Bride,” and others of Rimsky-Korsakov’s works. These excerpts are all referred to in the text itself, where they illustrate, far better than words, particular points of theory and actual musical practice. They are largely responsible for making this book the very special (and very useful) publication it is.
This single-volume edition also includes a brief preface by the editor and extracts from Rimsky-Korsakov’s 1891 draft and final versions of his own preface, as well as an appendixed chart of single tutti chords in the composer’s works.
In it, the composer aims to provide the reader with the fundamental principles of modern orchestration from the standpoint of brilliance and imagination, and he devotes considerable space to the study of tonal resonance and orchestral combination. In his course, he demonstrates such things as how to produce a good-sounding chord of certain tone-quality, uniformly distributed; how to detach a melody from its harmonic setting; correct progression of parts; and other similar problems.
The first chapter is a general review of orchestral groups, with an instrument-by-instrument breakdown and material on such technical questions as fingering, range, emission of sound, etc. There follows two chapters on melody and harmony in strings, winds, brasses, and combined groups. Chapter IV, Composition of the Orchestra, covers different ways of orchestrating the same music; effects that can be achieved with full tutti; tutti in winds, tutti pizzicato, soli in the strings, etc.; chords; progressions; and so on. The last two chapters deal with opera and include discussion of solo and choral accompaniment, instruments on stage or in the wings, technical terms, soloists (range, register, vocalization, vowels, etc.), voices in combination, and choral singing.
Immediately following this text are some 330 pages of musical examples drawn from “Sheherazade,” the “Antar Symphony,” “Capriccio Espagnol,” “Sadko,” “Ivan the Terrible,” “Le Coq d’Or,” “Mlada,” “The Tsar’s Bride,” and others of Rimsky-Korsakov’s works. These excerpts are all referred to in the text itself, where they illustrate, far better than words, particular points of theory and actual musical practice. They are largely responsible for making this book the very special (and very useful) publication it is.
This single-volume edition also includes a brief preface by the editor and extracts from Rimsky-Korsakov’s 1891 draft and final versions of his own preface, as well as an appendixed chart of single tutti chords in the composer’s works.
About the Author
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844–1908) was a prolific composer of orchestral works and many other forms of music, including chamber works and art songs. He also wrote many operas, excerpts from which are featured in this collection; most notably, “The Flight of the Bumblebee” from The Tale of Tsar Saltan.
