orchestra

American  

[awr-kuh-struh] / ˈɔr kə strə /

noun

1. a group of performers on various musical instruments, including especially stringed instruments of the viol class, clarinets and flutes, cornets and trombones, drums, and cymbals, for playing music, as symphonies, operas, popular music, or other compositions.

2. (in a modern theater)

   1. the space reserved for the musicians, usually the front part of the main floor orchestra pit.

   2. the entire main-floor space for spectators.

   3. the parquet.

3. (in the ancient Greek theater) the circular space in front of the stage, allotted to the chorus.

4. (in the Roman theater) a similar space reserved for persons of distinction.

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orchestra British  

/ ɔːˈkɛstrəl, ˈɔːkɪstrə /

noun

1. a large group of musicians, esp one whose members play a variety of different instruments See also symphony orchestra string orchestra chamber orchestra

2. a group of musicians, each playing the same type of instrument

   a balalaika orchestra

3. Also called: orchestra pit.  the space reserved for musicians in a theatre, immediately in front of or under the stage

4. the stalls in a theatre

5. (in the ancient Greek theatre) the semicircular space in front of the stage

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orchestra Cultural  

1. A group of musicians who play together on a variety of instruments, which usually come from all four instrument families — brass, percussion, strings, and woodwinds. A typical symphony orchestra is made up of more than ninety musicians. Most orchestras, unlike chamber music groups, have more than one musician playing each musical part.

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Usage

What’s the difference between an orchestra, a symphony, and a philharmonic? In popular use, orchestra, symphony, and philharmonic are often used interchangeably to refer to a large group of musicians assembled to play music, especially classical music. The most common (and general) term is orchestra. Most large orchestras include many different instruments and classes of instruments, including strings, woodwinds, brass, and percussion. The word symphony primarily refers to a complex, multipart musical composition (like Beethoven’s fifth symphony), but it’s also a short way of referring to a symphony orchestra—a large orchestra, the kind that performs symphonies. (Smaller orchestras—those with about 25 people—are often called chamber orchestras). As a noun, the word philharmonic can refer to a symphony orchestra or to the organization that sponsors it (sometimes called a philharmonic society, in which philharmonic is used as an adjective). The word orchestra most commonly refers to the group of musicians, but it can also refer to the space reserved for them, usually the front part of the main floor (sometimes called the orchestra pit). Both symphony and philharmonic are sometimes used in the names of orchestras, as in the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, and the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Here’s an example of orchestra, symphony, and philharmonic used correctly in a sentence. Example: I’ve attended performances of this symphony by the Berlin Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between orchestra, symphony, and philharmonic.

Other Word Forms

• orchestral
  adjective
• orchestrally
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of orchestra

1590–1600; < Latin orchēstra < Greek orchḗstra the space on which the chorus danced, derivative of orcheîsthai to dance

Explanation

If you love classical music concerts led by a conductor, with a big sound and plenty of violins, you're an orchestra fan. An orchestra features many different kinds of instruments, almost always including those with strings such as violas and cellos. Sometimes this group of musicians is called a "symphony orchestra," and it's directed by a conductor with a baton. The word orchestra comes from the actual space in which an orchestra plays; the Greek orkhestra means "a space where a chorus of dancers performs," from orkheisthai, "to dance."

Example Sentences

Throughout, she's accompanied by the 22-piece Heritage Orchestra, conducted by Yudania Gómez Heredia from a crucifix-shaped stage in the middle of the arena floor.

From BBC • May 6, 2026

Ullman, who had already performed with the National Symphony Orchestra, was once at a carwash where a high-school orchestra was doing a fundraiser.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 3, 2026

In the intervening years, when he was largely absent from U.S. podiums, Mr. Thomas cemented an enduring relationship with the London Symphony Orchestra, becoming its chief conductor in 1988.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 23, 2026

The Oscar-nominated director and Jurassic Park star is undertaking his first UK tour with his jazz band The Mildred Snitzer Orchestra and will be at The Halls on 28 May.

From BBC • Apr. 14, 2026

As a bonus following her Carnegie Hall retirement, Anderson performed that summer with her twenty-eight-year-old nephew James DePreist, who had been asked to conduct the Philadelphia Orchestra at Robin Hood Dell, Philadelphia’s outdoor amphitheater.

From "The Voice That Challenged a Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights" by Russell Freedman

Related Words

• band
• ensemble