Lesson plan
Cascading strings
Cascading strings (also sometimes known as "tumbling strings") is an arrangement technique of British light music. This technique is associated in the U.S. with the style of easy listening known as beautiful music. The cascading strings effect was first developed by British composer/arranger Ronald Binge in 1951 for Annunzio Paolo Mantovani and his Mantovani Orchestra, with whom the sound would be most associated. In 1951, record label Decca wanted Mantovani's 12-piece orchestra to produce something that would rival the big American concert orchestras. Binge, a musician in Mantovani's orchestra, had already been experimenting with arrangements that might replicate the long reverberating sound of composer Claudio Monteverdi, who had written works to take advantage of the spatial properties of the acoustic in large cathedrals. He now suggested that they dramatically increase the size of the string section of the orchestra. Decca invested in the expensive idea, which Mantovani called "a mass of strings." Work began on an album to be released in 1952, which would make Mantovani famous worldwide. When given the arrangement for what would become their first hit, "Charmaine," Mantovani had misgivings. "When we played it, it really sounded beautiful and the whole of the orchestra was delighted with it. Well, when an orchestra is delighted, I start worrying.…
Article summary
Cascading strings (also sometimes known as "tumbling strings") is an arrangement technique of British light music. This technique is associated in the U.S. with the style of easy listening known as beautiful music. The cascading strings effect was first developed by British composer/arranger Ronald Binge in 1951 for Annunzio Paolo Mantovani and his Mantovani Orchestra, with whom the sound would be most associated. In 1951, record label Decca wanted Mantovani's 12-piece orchestra to produce something that would rival the big American concert orchestras. Binge, a musician in Mantovani's orchestra, had already been experimenting with arrangements that might replicate the long reverberating sound of composer Claudio Monteverdi, who had written works to take advantage of the spatial properties of the acoustic in large cathedrals. He now suggested that they dramatically increase the size of the string section of the orchestra. Decca invested in the expensive idea, which Mantovani called "a mass of strings." Work began on an album to be released in 1952, which would make Mantovani famous worldwide. When given the arrangement for what would become their first hit, "Charmaine," Mantovani had misgivings. "When we played it, it really sounded beautiful and the whole of the orchestra was delighted with it. Well, when an orchestra is delighted, I start worrying.…
Key claims
- release date: 1952 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- The record states that the release date is "1952". What evidence would count against this claim?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
Bibliography
- Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1337903832
Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.