Clarinets came into the orchestra at the end of the 18th century, and trombones at the beginning of the 19th century. Orchestras were still quite small, though. The saxophone was invented in the middle of the 19th century, but although they started to use it in orchestras, it soon became an instrument that was used in wind bands and later jazz bands. The opera composer Richard Wagner made the orchestra much bigger because he kept asking for extra instruments. He asked for a bass clarinet in his opera "Lohengrin", and for his cycle of four operas called "The Ring of the Nibelung" he asked for an exact number of players: 16 first violins, 16 second violins, 12 violas, 12 cellos, 8 double basses, 3 flutes and piccolo, 3 oboes and cor anglais, 3 clarinets and bass clarinet, 3 bassoons, 3 trumpets and bass trumpet, 3 tenor trombones and a double bass trombone, 8 horns with 4 of them playing a specially designed tuba, a bass tuba, percussion, and 6 harps.
Not all pieces written after that need quite such a large orchestra, but concert halls had become bigger and composers had got used to a bigger variety of sounds. Later composers sometimes added all sorts of unusual instruments: wind machine, sandpaper block, bottles, typewriter, anvils, iron chains, cuckoo, Swannee whistle etc. None of these are normal orchestral instruments. Sometimes a piano is used in the percussion section, e.g. Igor Stravinsky used one in "Petrouchka". Sometimes voices are also used.
Today orchestras can usually be heard in concert halls. They also play in opera houses for opera and ballet, or in a large stadium for huge open-air concerts. Orchestras may record in studios for making CDs or recording music for movies. Many of them can be heard easily and cheaply every summer in London at the BBC Proms.
Some of the greatest orchestras today include: the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, the London Symphony Orchestra, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, the , the St Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, and the NHK Symphony Orchestra (Tokyo). Opera houses usually have their own orchestra, e.g. the orchestras of the Metropolitan Opera House, La Scala, or the Royal Opera House.
In many countries there are opportunities for school-age children who play instruments well to play in youth orchestras in their areas. In Britain some of the very best are selected to play in the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain. Other world-famous youth orchestras include the Orquesta Sinfónica Simón Bolívar, Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra, the European Union Youth Orchestra and the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra.
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is a sexual orientation. A homosexual person is romantically or sexually attracted to people of their own gender. Men who are romantically or sexually attracted to other men are called gay. Women who are romantically or sexually attracted to other women can be called gay as well, but are usually called lesbians. People who are romantically or sexually attracted to men "and" women are called bisexual.
Together homosexual, bisexual, and transgender people make up the LGBT community, which stands for "Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender". It is difficult to say how many people are homosexual. Homosexuality is known to exist in all cultures and countries.
One may say that homosexuality is the term used for people that feel romantically or sexually attracted to their own sex, but other definitions also exist. When one views homosexuality as the term for people that feel romantically or sexually attracted to their own sex, more people are gay than when one might view homosexuality as only a term for people who do "have" sexual relationships with their own sex. Usually, the term is used to view all the people who are romantically or sexually attracted to their own sex, as well as those with such attractions who have not had a sexual relationship with their own sex yet. Nonetheless, the most visible form of homosexuality is the actual relationship. Most 'evidence' of homosexuality in ancient cultures comes from drawings of the men in an intimate relationship or sex, because it's the most obvious.
The word "homosexual" comes from the Ancient Greek word "homo", meaning "same", and the Latin word for "gender". People in the LGBT community usually say "gay" instead of "homosexual." Some people also use the term "homophile" (from Greek ' ("homos", meaning "the same") and ' ("philein"; meaning "to love"). This term emphasizes romantic interest in the same sex, rather than sexual attraction.
There are many different words to describe homosexual people. Some of these are used to insult homosexual people. However, the LGBT community sometimes uses these words to describe themselves because the word "homosexual" can sound too clinical. This is done to make the words less hurtful. Some words to describe homosexual men are "gay" and "queer". Words to describe homosexual women are "lesbian" and "dyke". "Lesbian" is used most often. "Dyke" is used less often and is sometimes used to describe lesbians who are more masculine (act or dress more like men). However, "queer" and "dyke" are sometimes used against gay people as insults, so they can sometimes be offensive.
When homosexual people keep their sexual orientation a secret, they are said to be "in the closet". "Out" or "out of the closet" is a slang term that means a homosexual person is open about their sexual orientation. This means they do not hide the fact that they are homosexual. Some gay and lesbian people stay in the closet because of fear of what would happen or because they live in a place that is not safe for homosexual people.
Sometimes people who are 'out' also say they are 'proud'. "Out" means they are not hiding their sexual orientation. "Proud" means that they are pleased about it. "Proud" or "Pride" has a special meaning in the LGBT community. It means they are celebrating and being happy that they are homosexual. It is not 'pride' meaning that they have done something to be proud of, but 'pride' meaning the opposite of shame. Many cities have "Pride Parades". These used to be protest marches. Today, they are usually celebrations of the LGBT community. They usually occur in June, in memory of the 'Stonewall Riots' that happened in New York City in 1969. These riots happened because police harassed and arrested people for being homosexual. 'Stonewall' or the 'Stonewall Riots' are sometimes called the start of the LGBT rights movement.
The causes of homosexuality and bisexuality are controversial (people do not agree on them). The causes of homosexuality are not all understood, but genetics and the effects of the prenatal environment and hormones (when a baby is growing in its mother) are thought to be causes. There is not much evidence that the social environment is a cause of homosexuality. Scientists also show that homosexuality happens not only in humans. Some animals (like penguins, chimpanzees, and dolphins) often show homosexuality, and some (rams) even for lifelong periods as is the case with humans.
Doctors used to treat gay people as if they had mental illnesses. However, homosexuality is no longer called a disease by doctors in many countries. There are some religious and non-religious groups who still try to 'cure' homosexuality. This is sometimes called 'conversion therapy'. In therapies like this one, homosexual individuals have tried to become heterosexual and have even claimed they were changed, but most people do not believe it is possible.