Lyr Req/Add: Orchestra Song - German Lyrics?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: GUEST,jr10
Date: 11 Sep 08 - 11:59 AM

We used to sing this in school in Yorkshire in the 1970s. I could remember the horns, the violin and clarinet but thanks for all the rest. I'm teaching it to my little girl.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: GUEST,Angela
Date: 31 Dec 07 - 09:49 PM

Someone mentioned this song being from The Sound of Music. It is not in the movie but you may have remembered it from the musical. I performed this song when in the 2nd grade in the high school production of The Sound of Music. The lyrics were as follows:

The violin's singing.
Ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah (these are sung in various notes)

The horn, the horn,
it sounds so forlorn.

The clarinet, the clarinet,
goes doodle doodle doodle doodle det.

The drum, the drum,
Five, five, five, five, one.

There may be more lyrics, I have the sheet music.. somewhere.
Any questions email me: [e-mail]

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: GUEST,Mrs Meyer
Date: 31 Oct 07 - 05:18 AM

You mentioned you had found "The Orchestra Song" in a 1974 book, "Songs for a New Generation..." What I'd like to track down, though, is the book current in the early Fifties that had not only the Orchestra Song (hope I'm referring to the same thing -- Clarinet goes doodle doodle doodle doodle-det) but also another song about the Skena River, and many other part songs for children.
I've just been asked to cover someone's maternity leave for a music class and this book would be perfect -- as I'm sure it's long out of copyright I can copy it and they'll never know how old the songs are that I'm teaching them! Can you help?
(Best place for used books, I find, is www.bookfinder.com, which lists Amazon as well as many "normal" used bookshops.)
Many thanks for whatever leads you can give me.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: GUEST,Children's Librarian
Date: 18 Jan 07 - 08:53 PM

Score! I found the sheet music and lyrics to "The Orchestra Song" in a softcover book called "Songs for a New Generation: Fun Songs, Rounds and Harmony". copyright 1974 Oak Publications, a division of Embassy Music Corporation. Too old for the book to have an ISBN number. Did not have time to check its availability on Amazon.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: GUEST
Date: 13 Dec 06 - 10:17 PM

I remember a total of seven separate lines-- Violin, Clarinet, Trumpet, Horn, and Timpani, as listed here, but also Bassoon and Piccolo.

The bassoon it makes a point of counterpoint
Da da da da da daaa da da da da da da da da da (that helped a lot, didn't it? But those were the words, as a recall. A very pretty melody.)

and

The piccolo goes tootle-oot-oot, toodle-oot doot doo.

Maybe I'll think about how to post the melodies. I don't have easy access to MIDI, so can't do much there.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 12 Nov 06 - 08:36 PM

I thought you meant

"I am a fine musician, I practise every day"

will have to look for the words,

but each verse includes

"my xxxx, my xxxx
I love to play my xxxx"

can be done with a group - each verse and chourus, then each accumulative orchestra.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: GUEST
Date: 12 Nov 06 - 01:48 AM

The slide trombone can sing many tones, the slide trombone can sing many tones. that is one my mum remembers from when she did it in primary school.

Subject: ADD: Orchestra Song
From: GUEST,Stu Dent
Date: 11 Mar 05 - 05:59 PM

"The clarinets, the clarinets, of all the woodwinds we most notes can get"

http://www.nwlg.org/pages/resources/pmusic/orchestra_4.htm (MIDI)

---

	The Orchestra Song
	The violins of all the strings We take the lead and have the most to do We gaily play the melody And sing away the whole piece through
	The clarinets, the clarinets, Of all the woodwind we most notes can get A single reed is all we need To make our smooth and mellow sound
	The horns, the horns Of curling brass Can murmur low Or loudly blast!
	For the fanfare our trumpety sound is best Our trumpety sound is best, our trumpety sound is best For the fanfare our trumpety sound is best Our trumpety sound is best is best
	The Kettledrums echo The two notes we best know Soh-doh, doh-soh Soh, soh, soh soh, doh

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: GUEST,newjean
Date: 19 Feb 05 - 01:03 PM

Sheet music for The Orchestra Song:

http://www.dsokids.com/2001/dso.asp?PageID=416

(courtesy of Dallas Symphony Association)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From:
Date: 01 Feb 05 - 11:04 PM

I've been (successfully) teaching my 24 month old grandson to sing "the horn" part of The Orchestra while I do the "clarinet" and am aching to get the sheet music to find the other parts which I've forgotten. If anyone has sheet music for The Orchestra Song, can you let me know at [e-mail] (in case i can't find my way back onto this site which I googled from writing out the words from "the horn, the horn, it sounds so forlorn.")

thanks, Marsha

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: M
Date: 05 Jan 00 - 06:19 PM

Y'all are too much! More to pass on to my friend. It's making me giggle. Thanks again all.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: AllisonA(Animaterra)
Date: 04 Jan 00 - 09:40 PM

One of John Langstaff's recordings has a lovely arrangement of this- I think it's "Let's Make Music"- I'll look it up when I'm at work. The translation has a lot more words than those above. I remember:

The violins, of all the strings,
They take the lead and have the most to do,
They sweetly play the melody.
And sing away the whole piece through!

The clarinet, the clarinet,
Of all the woodwinds we most (?) can get,
A single reed is all we need
To play our sweet and mellow sound.

For a fanfare a trumpetty sound is best,
a trumpetty sound is best,
a trumpetty sound is best,
For a fanfare a trumpetty sound is best,
a trumpetty sound is best is best.

The kettledrums echo
The two notes we best know
Sol do, do sol,
Sol sol sol sol do

The horns the horns of curling brass
Can murmur low or loudly blast

Wow! I remembered more than I thought!
Allison

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: DougR
Date: 04 Jan 00 - 09:23 PM

Alice: A small bit of trivia realted to Julius Hereford. He was Robert Shaw's choral conducting teacher. The student did very well.

DougR

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: M
Date: 04 Jan 00 - 04:51 PM

Thank you thank you thank you!!! Alice, you are a dear. It does sound silly, but my friend, from a family of nine, Dutch and Slavic ancestry, did used to sing this song with her family. Too cornball. (I originally asked her if it was from The Sound of Music.) Thanks so much for the publishing origins. I don't need the notation, at the moment. Thanks again.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: Charlie Baum
Date: 03 Jan 00 - 11:55 PM

Another verse I remember is :
The horn, the horn, it sounds so forlorn (bis)
This line is sung on a drone.

A variant drum I've heard goes:
The drum it has two tones, a high one, a low one. High, low, low, high, high, high, high, high, low.

I'm trying to remember the first time I heard this, and it might have been in Colonial Williamsburg as an example of music from the 1700s. The piece is certainly old enough to qualify as traditional music, and the existance of variants as to the sounds certain instruments make further qualifies it as a folk song!

--Charlie Baum

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: Alice
Date: 03 Jan 00 - 09:16 PM

lyrics posted here for educational purposes only
I have the notation if you need it.

Orchestra Song (Quodlibet)
German folk tune


The violins ringing like lovely singing
The violins ringing like lovely song.


The clarinet, the clarinet makes doodle doodle doodle doodle det,
the clarinet, the clarinet, makes doodle doodle doodle det.


The timpani's two tones and always the same tones
Five, one, one, five, five, five, five five, one.


(sing the song in this order: 1. "violins"only 2. "clarinets" only 3. "violins and clarinets together 4. "timpani" only 5. all together.

alice

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: bigJ
Date: 03 Jan 00 - 09:04 PM

I have an old LP by Oscar Brand and the Tarriers on which they sing 'The Violins Play Along' - a sort of round - would it be that? The first verse goes :-
The violins play along and everyone must learn to sing the song x 2.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: Alice
Date: 03 Jan 00 - 09:01 PM

It IS "The Orchestra Song", found it in an old harmony book. It says it is German traditional (the tune), and it is taken from Humor In Vocal Music by Julius Herford, © 1946 by Hargail Music Press, NYC.

I'll transcribe the lyrics if no one else has them to post first.

alice

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: Alice
Date: 03 Jan 00 - 08:46 PM

... and then again, maybe not. I've got to check this out a little more. -alice

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: Alice
Date: 03 Jan 00 - 08:42 PM

The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra by Benjamin Britten. 'You've Got Mail' was aired on tv recently and I remember hearing it in the soundtrack, too. -alice

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: Alice
Date: 03 Jan 00 - 08:34 PM

yes, I know the song you are referring to and I'll get back to you on the details in a few minute. -alice

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Orchestra Song
From: DougR
Date: 03 Jan 00 - 08:03 PM

M: I have the soundtrack to "You've Got Mail," and I see no mention of "The Orchestra Song" on the CD. I was a teenager during the 1940s and I have no recollection of the song at all. I'll be interested to see if someone can help you with this one.

DougR

Subject: Orchestra Song
From: M
Date: 03 Jan 00 - 04:57 PM

I know this is not quite within the realm of the Mudcat, but you all are usually so helpful. Does anybody know the words to "The Orchestra Song"? It's a vocal piece, with at least five parts. The lyrics to each part are about an instrument in the orchestra and what sound it makes. Parts are sung individually, then all sung together, and it sounds like...an orchestra. A friend sang this with her family (in the US) some time in the late 1950s-early 1960s, but she said her father sang it in college (mid 1940s). It made a brief appearance in the movie "You've Got Mail," with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, but was not listed in the credits. Any help?