I have conducted semi-professional and serious college/community orchestras for many years, both paid and volunteer, and it is standard practice that each player will do their own warmup before rehearsal begins. After tuning, I would delve right into the rehearsal.

 

Lee G. Barrow

North Georgia College & State University

Dahlonega GA 30597

Orchestra players -- even students and amateurs -- are routined quite differently from the way amateur choral singers are.  They are trained to warm up their instruments and fingers (and embouchers, in the case of wind players) and be prepared to respond to a tuning A at the moment the second hand crosses the 12 at the hour the rehearsal was called for.  (A corollary to this is that they're habituated to stop and pack up at the moment the second hand crosses the 12 at the hour the rehearsal has been announced to end, even in the middle of a phrase if they're not entranced with the conductor or the music.)  The tuning ritual serves as the trigger for mental focus even more than it does for tuning, since by the time they get there the instruments are warmed up and often already in tune.

 

Jerome Hoberman

 

Music Director/Conductor, The Hong Kong Bach Choir & Orchestra

Principal Conductor, Baguio Cathedral International Music Festival (Philippines)

 While both posts by Lee and Jerome are representative of common practice and appropriate, I would add that you should also trust your ears and instinct in rehearsal with any orchestral or choral musicians. If you try delving right in and it doesn't work, try delving in with something more accessible in the repertoire and address some basic musical concerns of intonation, phrasing, articulation, etc., until you discern that they are ready to move on. If you are working with this same group of musicians on a protracted basis, let your desires be known and lead them to place you want them to be. Telling orchestral or choral musicians that you expect them to arrive ready to make music, on time for tuning, etc., is perfectly appropriate if done professionally and respectfully, particularly if there is any evidence of confusion among them. There are nuances of expectation in every ensemble that you can help establish.

 

I would only take exception to one sentence in your original post. Time is always limited and players are always being paid! Even if time is somewhat flexible it is still limited by some constraints and precious. The more we respect the time of our musicians the more they will value the time they put in. Even if not reimbursed with financial considerations for their work, musicians both are incurring costs for being there (baby sitting at  home, transportation, instrument maintenance, lessons, practice time, etc.), and are receiving some sort of intrinsic or extrinsic rewards for their participation. It always seems helpful to me to evaluate the "pay scale" to be sure that it is sufficient to sustain the musicians for the long haul.

 

Michael Shasberger

Conductor Westmont College Choir and Orchestra