]
(Zoöl.) Any species
of amphipod crustacean of the genus Orchestia, or family
Orchestidæ. See Beach flea, under
Beach.Or"ches*tra (?), n. [L.
orchestra, Gr. &?;, orig., the place for the chorus of
dancers, from &?; to dance: cf. F. orchestre.]
1. The space in a theater between the stage and
the audience; -- originally appropriated by the Greeks to the chorus
and its evolutions, afterward by the Romans to persons of
distinction, and by the moderns to a band of instrumental
musicians.
2. The place in any public hall appropriated
to a band of instrumental musicians.
3. (Mus.) (a) Loosely:
A band of instrumental musicians performing in a theater, concert
hall, or other place of public amusement. (b)
Strictly: A band suitable for the performance of symphonies,
overtures, etc., as well as for the accompaniment of operas,
oratorios, cantatas, masses, and the like, or of vocal and
instrumental solos. (c) A band composed,
for the largest part, of players of the various viol instruments,
many of each kind, together with a proper complement of wind
instruments of wood and brass; -- as distinguished from a military or
street band of players on wind instruments, and from an assemblage of
solo players for the rendering of concerted pieces, such as septets,
octets, and the like.
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