An orchestra is a group of musicians who play together on various instruments. Sometimes it 32_______alone, at other times it plays along with a group of singers. Orchestras give concerts and play for ballets or operas. They also provide background music for movies and TV shows.

When we speak of orchestras we usually mean symphony orchestras. They have many instruments and play mostly classical music which is performed in 33___________.

Some symphony orchestras have only 34__________musicians. The most famous are in the larger cities of the world. Among them are the Berlin Philharmonic, the Vienna Philharmonic, the New York Philharmonic, the Boston and London Symphony.

Orchestral music is 35__________in the form of a score, which shows the notes that are played by each instrument. Every musician only sees the notes that he or she plays. The conductor stands in front of the orchestra and directs the musicians.

An orchestra can have up to 20 kinds of different instruments. Large symphony orchestras can have a hundred musicians. Smaller ones like 36_________orchestras have between 5 and 40 players. They originally were small enough to play in hall.

A modem orchestra consists of four sections or families of instruments. The string section is the most important part of a symphony orchestra. It has more than a half of the musicians and consists of violins, violas, cellos and string basses. The violinists play high sounds and are divided into two groups. The first violins and the second violins usually play different 37_________. The 38________first violinist is the concertmaster of the orchestra. He helps the other musicians to tune their instruments and serves as the assistant. Cellos and string basses play low sounds.