ORCHESTRATION

ANALYSIS &

RESEARCH

DATABASE

orchard logo

FAQ

What is this database

  • The Orchestration Analysis and Research Database (Orchard) contains over 4439 annotations of orchestral grouping effects within 66 full movements of orchestral pieces, spanning 1787-1943 (and one piece from 2004), and continues to grow!
  • Each annotation can be viewed on a detail page, which contains information about the composer, work, movement, measures, instrumentation, and a brief description. You can view the annotated score and listen to a short sound clip.
  • See our About page for more information about the background of the project and the types of orchestral effects studied.
  • Due to copyright issues, the database is only available to our research partners. To register as a research partner, click on Register.

What can I do?

  1. Browse the database (top-down approach) by selecting “Orchestral Grouping Effects” or “Models” in the navigation bar to the right.
  2. Simple searches using keywords in the search bar above (automatic text completion will assist you). Your list of results can be refined through dynamically generated facets (similar to filters on Amazon.ca) and sorted in various ways.
  3. Advanced searches with the “QueryBuilder Search” which allows you to specify the search parameters in a hierarchical format using Boolean operators (AND, OR). Based on the results list, you can refine your search further by adjusting the details of the query and through hierarchical sorting.
  4. Explore the annotations to study orchestration practices at play! You will soon be able to export selected annotations for further analyses (e.g., data mining) with the Save Query feature.

Who are we?

  • To learn more about our interdisciplinary, international research team, please visit our ACTOR website.

Questions?