Our OrchLab resources explore the music and instruments of the London Philharmonic Orchestra and wider OrchLab project, using this as inspiration for musical activities, information and games.
Explore the four categories to start your musical journey.
OrchLab Soundmakers include four online instruments – Circles, Squares, Percussion and Lines – which you can play with the bottom row of a computer keyboard or by using a touch screen device. Overview OrchLab Soundmakers work on both computers and devices with touch screen (e.g. tablet, mobile phone). You can use either touchscreen or a
Posted in Create & Compose, Resources, Staff guidance & training4 Comments
We’ve hidden some of the instruments you might find in an orchestra in the wordsearch below. Can you find all 12 of them? If you want to learn more about some of the instruments we’ve featured, have a look at the OrchMap where you can find explanation videos from the musicians from the London Philharmonic
Posted in Games & Quizzes, Resources
A bit like a family around the table, each section of the Orchestra (also known as a family) has its own place to sit! Can you find the Brass, Woodwind, Strings and Percussion families as well as the conductor who leads them all in the picture below? See if you can discover them all in
Posted in Games & Quizzes, Resources
Play that tune! This is a great group activity if you have a few people taking part in a music session and a set of chime bars and/or bells. In this activity, each person plays one note in a complete melody, much like in bell-ringing. You will need a set of chime bars or bells,
Posted in Create & Compose, Listen & Discover, Resources
Antonín Dvořák (1841–1904) Antonín Dvořák came from a humble background, one in which he was never expected to become a musician, let alone one of the most famous composers of the 19th century whose music continues to be played by orchestras all over the world! He was born in a small village in Bohemia (which
Posted in Listen & Discover, Resources1 Comment
In Autumn 2021, OrchLab worked with groups from Flying Angel (Look Ahead Care Support & Housing) and Chipstead Lake (Leonard Cheshire) on a project inspired by Swan Lake, a ballet by Pyotr Illyich Tchaikovsky. It was so brilliant to be back making music with these groups in person, as prior to this project we had
Posted in Listen & Discover, Resources
iPads make fantastic digital musical instruments, and we use them a lot in OrchLab sessions thanks to their adaptability and accessibility. Guided Access is really useful when using iPads as instruments as it stops the ‘home’ button from closing apps, prevents other apps from being opened, and can stop participants accidentally changing settings within the app
Posted in Resources, Staff guidance & training
Test your memory by matching the musical sounds (make sure your sound is on!). Tap each card to flip it over, then try and remember where the matching sound is so you can match the pairs. The extracts you hear are from Czech composer Antonin Dvořák’s New World Symphony, performed by the LPO. You can
Posted in Games & Quizzes, Resources
Music sessions don’t have to just be practical music-making – music can be a rich topic for discussion and creativity in many directions, and you can often find out interesting things about each other by discussing music together. Taking inspiration from the idea of book clubs, the Music Listening Club invites members of your music
Posted in Listen & Discover, Resources