My First Orchestra Album

Hearing a whole orchestra play is a bit like looking at an enormous colourful painting, full of amazing patterns. The instruments of the orchestra all make different sounds, and when they play together they can make you think and feel and imagine hundreds of different things! There are four main groups of orchestral instruments.

At the front there are the string instruments: the deep-voiced double basses (taller than the people who play them!), the cellos, the violas and the violins, which sound the highest notes. They each have four strings which are played with a horse-hair bow.

Behind them sit the wind players, who blow into their instruments - gently for quiet notes and harder for loud notes. The biggest instrument, with the lowest sound, is the bassoon, followed by the clarinet, oboe, flute and the tiny piccolo, which can make such a high bright sound it can be heard over the whole orchestra.

The brass section can get very loud, so that's why it is positioned further back. Brass players blow into their instruments too: if you can blow raspberries you would probably be an excellent trumpeter! The tuba is the largest, then come the trombones, horns and trumpets, all made of beautiful shiny metal.

Right at the back are the percussionists, playing drums, timpani, cymbals, triangles and xylophones - in fact anything that can be struck! The conductor stands at the front, facing the orchestra and making sure that everyone plays the right thing at the right time.

Naxos Global Distribution Ltd : Naxos Records is the world's leading classical music label as measured by the number of new recordings it releases and the depth and breadth of its catalogue. Naxos was founded in 1987 by Klaus Heymann, a German-born entrepreneur based in Hong Kong.

Under his continuing stewardship, Naxos has developed from being known primarily as a budget label focusing on standard repertoire into a global music group comprising a raft of downloading and streaming platforms, a significant cata