Rehearsal Etiquette, Part 2

This is a continuation from Part 1, which looked at personal etiquette. Part 2 examines sectional rehearsal etiquette, or how you should behave in regards to the rest of your section.

Hey so you know when you’re in rehearsal and your principal turns to you and says, “Let’s play this part a little more piano and legato,” and you’re like SURE WHATEVER LOSER –S T A C C A T O– and then suddenly everything goes dark and you smell smoke and a crackly voice says “Welcome to Hell!” And you’re like, “Wait a minute, there must be some mistake, I was expecting St. Peter!” Don’t worry! That wasn’t a mistake.

Sectional Rules: Non-principals

Hopefully you have learned how to comport yourself as an individual, because now it’s time to learn how to behave as part of a group. Orchestras are composed of different sections, which are grouped by instrument: cello section, trumpet section, percussion section, etc; violins are split into first and second violin sections. Each of these sections has a principal player. There are also “sections” based on instrument family: the string section, the woodwind section, and the brass section.

Each section of the orchestra has slightly different internal rules, and obviously I am most familiar with the those of the string sections. I’ll toss in what I know of other sections though, and you can tell me in the comments how I’m wrong! In general, though, as a section player, listen to your principal and try your best to blend into your section.

String Players:

You’re probably going to have a stand partner, so a lot of these rules deal with that (sorry, bass players). Position yourself so that you can see the music and the conductor without blocking your stand partner. Stands have an inside and an outside: outside is on the audience side, inside is not. If you’re unpacking at your desk, cases and personal items go under your chair or on the outside of your stand. We’ll get to hierarchy in Part 3, but right now you need to know that the outside player is a step above the inside player on the ladder.

In divisi, outside plays the upper line, inside plays the lower. When marking in fingerings, outside marks above the staff, inside marks below. Make sure that, while you do mark essentials, you don’t over-mark. If everything is circled, nothing is circled. Inside players turn pages, and you need to do so as non-disruptively as possible: that means quickly, quietly, and on time. If you have to stop playing early to get the page over in time, you stop playing early. Your stand partner is going to get annoyed if they keep having to wait on you to turn the page; they don’t have x-ray vision to see what’s on the next page.

Get the correct bowings. If they’re not in the part already, look at the stand in front of you, or get them from the principal’s part during break. When your principal makes a change during rehearsal, make sure that gets passed back through the section. Don’t be that stand that kills the information train, unless you like having daggers stared into the back of your head.

Non-String Players:

Match your principal’s articulation. String players get a head start on this with being able to see bowings, you get to rely on your ears (oh my!). Match your principal’s intonation (hopefully they’ve practiced with a tuner). If you have rests and you’re sitting there, maybe a little bored, watching your principal’s solo line going by, let it go by. Do not try to finger along. Would you like to see that out of the corner of your eye if you were playing the solo? Of course not! That’s hella distracting!

Sectional Rules: Principals

Alright now I need to talk to you, principals, because I don’t know if you noticed or not but a lot of those above sectional rehearsal etiquette rules hinged on you. You don’t get to be special lawless fairy tale princes and princesses, you get to be special law abiding actual princes and princesses who have actual governing work to do.

Be prepared. Know what the part is like, know what the style should be, know what the bowings are.

Don’t suck. No pressure. Practice before (weird concept I know) with a metronome and a tuner or drones.

Lead. You can do so much non-verbally, but not if you sit there like a bump on a log. Cue entrances, breaths, gestures, whatever you feel your section could use. Don’t go overboard, but trust me: the deck is a lot bigger than you think it is.

Communicate. Talk to your section. Non-verbal cues are cool and all, but some things need words. Also, talk with other section leaders. An orchestra isn’t made up of little instrument islands.

The Sectional Rehearsal Etiquette Basics

Basically all this boils down to two points: play nice with the other kids, and the kid with the biggest stick makes the rules. Remember, rehearsal etiquette is all about avoiding getting stabbed by your fellow musicians. (You laugh, but don’t forget what your double reed friends are packing.) So make sure you check out Part 1 on your personal conduct, and check back for Part 3: This Time It’s Orchestral.