# Orchestral Shorthand.



## MrStu (Nov 20, 2015)

Hello all,

Newbie here. Struggling to fully grasp the shorthand given for an exercise in orchestration I have been given.









Could someone possibly explain what the following means, and how it should be laid out on staves. Big ask I know.

Thank you!

2 (2+picc). 2 (2+ca). 2 (2+b.cl). 2 (2 +cb) / 4.3.3.1


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## techniquest (Aug 3, 2012)

I assume that 2+pic = 2 flutes + piccolo; 2+ca = 2 oboes + cor anglais; 2+b.cl = 2 clarinets + bass clarinet; 2+cb = 2 bassoons + contra-bassoon / 4.3.3.1 = 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones 1 tuba. But I could be wrong...


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## maestro267 (Jul 25, 2009)

The woodwind instruments in brackets usually means the 2nd main-instrument player doubles on it, so the 2nd flute player doubles on piccolo, 2nd oboe on cor anglais, 2nd clarinet on bass clarinet and 2nd bassoon on contrabassoon.


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## techniquest (Aug 3, 2012)

Aha - that makes sense. So when MrStu is doing his score, he must remember that he can't have 2 flutes _and_ a piccolo playing at the same time; he can either have 1 flute or 2 flutes or 1 flute & 1 piccolo, or just one flute or just the piccolo.


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