Production, convention and power: Constructing the sound of an Early Music orchestra

By explaining how an Early Music orchestra produces its sound, we can review Howard Becker’sconcept of a convention. An orchestra’s sound depends on principles incorporated in things (musicalinstruments, scores) and bodies (musicians’ techniques).A common set of principles about interpretinga piece of music—principles acquired well before any rehearsal—do not suffice for coordinatinga group of musicians. As observations have shown, face-to-face interactions are decisive in thiscoordination. The conductor is not omniscient and does not impose his interpretation on musicians.Relations based on authority, being unstable, are redistributed among the conductor, soloist and firstviolin during rehearsals. Recognizing the importance of face-to-face interactions draws attention tothe cogency of power relations, which, though omnipresent, are constantly reworked in the situationfor producing an orchestra’s sound