AN ORCHESTRA IS A ‘HOLARCHY’

    While writing a management-type essay about how an organisation could be structured as an orchestra is, and, how an orchestra is a perfect example of a holarchy, I adapted it as a standalone essay on the orchestra as a holarchy

WHAT'S HOLON & HOLARCHY

     So what’s a holarchy? “A Holarchy is a ‘Natural Hierarchy’ of Holons”, said Arthur Koestler, who coined the words ‘holon’ and holarchy to refer to an entity that is in itself a whole and is simultaneously part of some other whole.  

     And what’s a holon? A Holon is a whole and a part. Just as a particle is complete by itself and exists by itself but becomes part of another complete entity - an atom, it yet retains its completeness and its identity. A Holon too, is a complete entity which in addition to maintaining its own autonomy as a whole, simultaneously fits in as a part of something else. Its own existence, though complete, depends upon its capacity to fit-in and be part of something else. For instance, a whole atom is part of a whole cell, and the whole cell is part of a whole organism, and so on... in an increasing form of wholeness - from atoms, to molecules, to plants, to animals and to humans. Each of these entities is both a whole and a part - a ‘whole/part’, a Holon.

     A ‘holarchy’ is simply an order of increasing wholeness. For example: particles > atoms > cells > organisms, or, letters of the alphabet > words > sentences > paragraphs. The whole of one level becomes a part of the whole of the next.

     A natural hierarchy, for example is - Date > Month > Quarter > Year.  Or - Cities > States > Countries > Regions > Continents.

     When one says, “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts” that means that the whole is at a deeper or higher level of organisation than the parts alone – that’s a Holarchy!  

     The words Holon and Holarchy that were neologised by Arthur Koestler were examined explored by Ken Wilber in his book “A Brief History of Everything” and it is from this book that I have summarised and rearticulated the ideas of the holon and holarchy.

AN ORCHESTRA AS A HOLARCHY

     An orchestra, or a jazz band or a choir are perfect examples of a Holarchy.

     For an orchestra, the score, written in musical notation, are the written rules and guidelines for the part each member of the orchestra sings or plays on their individual instrument to suit the section to which the instrument belongs, and the score is arranged so that all the several different instruments, voices and instrument-groups play their different written parts to blend harmoniously together.

     Each musician, instrument voice and instrumentalist play a specific part which is complete by itself, but which also merges into the section of which it is part, and each section of the orchestra augments and enhances the sound of the whole orchestra. This is what makes an orchestra “a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts”. And this is typical of a holarchy.  

     We will look at how a large group of musicians, is organised and constructed to produce music.  

    A symphony* orchestra is composed of a large group of organized instruments which usually play classical music compositions, and could have as many as 100 musicians in it, and perhaps, in a large 100 piece symphony orchestra, around sixty or seventy would play stringed instruments and the rest would play other instruments. A Jazz band or choir could also have many musicians playing many instruments and have many singers in them. 

     The string section of a symphony orchestra is: first violins, second violins, violas, cellos and double basses. One or two harps may also be part of the symphony orchestra.

     The woodwind section is next - woodwinds are usually composed of flutes (including alto and bass flute), piccolos, oboes (including bass oboe), cor anglais, clarinets, bass clarinet, bassoons and a double bassoon.  

    Then there is the brass section, the instruments which comprise the brass section of a symphony orchestra are the trumpet, cornet, trombone (including the alto and bass trombone), French horn and tuba.

     Percussion instruments - Not all percussion instruments will be included in a symphony orchestra. The percussion instruments are usually the xylophone, bass drum, tympani and piano.

     A jazz orchestra or big band is also an organisation of a large number of musicians who play a variety of musical instruments that play Jazz or any orchestrated music.  

A Jazz orchestra or Jazz band is also divided into sections, for example, Charles Mingus’s big band compositions had a Woodwind section of Alto saxophones, tenor saxophones, baritone saxophones, Bassoon, bass clarinet; and piccolo, flute, oboe and clarinet. 

The Brass section had Trumpets, French horn, trombones, tuba. And the Rhythm section had - Piano, Bass, drums, vibes (vibraharp), guitar, percussion. Sometimes a jazz orchestra or jazz band has a few strings, and occasionally, a symphonic string section to complement the orchestra.

In a choir a group of voices is divided in to four parts of voice pitches and tones:

Sopranos, alto’s, tenors and basses, singing different notes and parts in harmony which could be accompanied by an instrument, or a small ensemble, or an orchestra, or unaccompanied by any musical instrument. A choir could comprise just a few male and female voices, to a hundred voices and more.

     

An orchestra exemplifies and illustrates a ‘Holarchy’

     The orchestra or jazz band or Choir is structured so that all are equally important to each other and interdependent. Each voice or instrument is like a Holon, which maintains its own wholeness, identity and autonomy, yet fits in as a part of something bigger than itself. Each voice or instrument is part of a section, like the string section or woodwinds or brass or percussion, yet each plays its own part in the section it belongs to and each section, plays its part according to its role in the orchestra. 

     So, an orchestra is constructed as a Holarchy and comprises equally important independent parts which would increase in its wholeness as it grows. Though each voice or instrument is capable of being a soloist and independent, it is part of a higher level, which, in turn fits into another part at a deeper or higher level of the orchestra, making 

the whole greater than the sum of its parts.  Q.E.D.  

     *A symphony orchestra or a philharmonic orchestra is the same thing, but the words symphony or philharmonic are only used to differentiate orchestras. When there are two good orchestras in a city, one would call itself a symphony orchestra and the other a philharmonic orchestra for e.g. the New York Philharmonic Orchestra (NYPO), founded

in 1842, and the New York Symphony Orchestra founded in 1878, which, till today, entertain discerning audiences with a high quality of music with only their distinctive names to differentiate them.

https://reformcommunications.blogspot.com/2013/10/organisation-as-orchestra-as-holarchy.html

THE ORCHESTRA - THE CONDUCTOR’S INSTRUMENT

     “Is he going to beat her up after she stops singing” asked Dennis the menace, seeing a conductor waving his arms frantically while directing an opera singer and the orchestra.

     Conductors have different ways of directing an orchestra, some are very active and use their whole body to conduct, and some are very quiet with minimal movement. 

     Given that every single member of an orchestra is an accomplished musician who wouldn’t find a place in the orchestra if they didn’t reach the highest standards of proficiency in their instrument ... so, a question an audience often asks itself is, what on earth does the conductor do and why do they need someone to direct them and wave their arms at them like a traffic cops? 

     The answer is: The orchestra is the instrument of the conductor. Just as the instrumentalists in the orchestra are masters at their instruments and play their instrument with mastery. The conductor plays the orchestra as an instrument and is the master of the orchestra.

     An interesting aside - most orchestra’s are known by their name, Like the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra or the Berlin Philharmonic or the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, or London Symphony Orchestra, except in India, where if an orchestra, let’s say, the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, visits to play, and if Zubin Mehta is the conductor, then nobody knows the name of the orchestra, they only know that Zubin Mehta played here. The name of the orchestra that he conducted is not remembered. And though, the way Indians see it is not exactly the right way to view an orchestra or a conductor, especially as it is in the case of Zubin Mehta, to most Indians, the conductor is inadvertently, but correctly, known to play an orchestra. 

HARMONY, BALANCE, CONCORD AND SYNCHRONICITY

     Music for orchestras is written in the language of musical notation in the form of sheet music called the score, and the musical score is arranged so that all the several different instruments, voices and instrument-groups play their different written parts to blend harmoniously together. 

     Orchestration is all about harmony, balance, concord and synchronisation. All the instruments in an orchestra harmonise; i.e. they play different but compatible notes that sound good when played at the same time. So, the string section of the orchestra, the first violins, second violins, violas and cello’s play different but complementary notes to produce a harmonised melody. This applies to each section, woodwinds and brass too. And, each section harmonises with each other in a balanced synchronization, entering and exiting at different times to add to the colours and textures of the musical work in accordance with the tonal quality of the group of instruments. This is done in precise coordination and consonance with the rhythm and overall musical conception that has been written by the composer who like a painter, uses a whole pallet of colours, tones and textures through various instruments in the creation of a musical work of art.

THE CONDUCTOR IS THE MUSICAL DIRECTOR  

     Each of the musicians in a big band or orchestra are competent musicians who are expert on their individual instruments, but the conductor or musical director knows every part in the entire score intimately and also has a basic knowledge of every instrument.

     By waving her/his baton and appearing to be a musical traffic director during a concert, the conductor showcases the proficiency of the whole orchestra.   

     The Conductor or Director of music of a music group or orchestra is more than a baton waving time keeper to the musicians. The conductor is a guide, controller and custodian of the music.

     A good conductor has a vision of a piece, and interprets musical works, exposing the artistic quality and distinct features of the music in an insightful and often moving way, contributing to the overall "voice" of the orchestra.

      The conductor leads the orchestra or band through rehearsals and prepares the musical ensemble for public presentations. During rehearsals, the director communicates his/her vision of the piece to the musicians and breathes life into the score, by shaping the whole conception of the music by demonstrating and verbally describing what exactly they need orchestra members to do to get a specific sound or feeling, and by tweaking the structure to create orchestral balance. The conductor rehearses the ensemble by executing specific arm movements to convey the mood of the music.

     The conductor aids the musicians with arm movements, communicating with the musicians in real-time, often with gestures and facial expressions; beginning the piece, cueing musicians and providing tempo reminders and indicating dynamics so they make their entries and exits and go soft and loud at the right time. 

    The way orchestras perform depends on the conducting style, and that’s why the same musical work often sound quite different under different conductors. 
Some conductors in performance are vigorous in their movements and some seem to hint minimally at what is expected of the orchestra. Some conductors allow the orchestra to lead itself and seem to listen and enjoy the music as it emerges. They are facilitators. Some move their hands artistically as if giving shape to the output of the orchestra, guiding rather than commanding. Generally, good conductors allow the musicians - the orchestra, to do what they do best i.e. play. 

     We’ll close with a humorous, yet to my mind, cynical quote from Thomas Beecham, the English conductor and impresario best known for his association with the London Philharmonic and the Royal Philharmonic orchestras ~ “There are two golden rules for an orchestra: start together and finish together. The public doesn’t give a damn what goes on in between.”