> > Wow...uh...well this *still* doesn't really explain why "violas are the easiest to pick on". So if I cut all this down to the chase, am I correct in deducing that the actual tone range of a viola is effectively covered by violins and cellos, already? In other words, violas are a joke because they're actually somewhat *redundant* in an orchestra?
> >
> > Wolfspirit
>
> A viola is not redundant at all. As far as I can tell, the only reason violas get so much flack is because they don't stand out so much: Instead of being particularly high or low like a violin or cello, they are right in between. That's not to say they aren't important, because violas fill in the gap left between violins and cellos. It's not the most glorifying job in an orchestra, but it is an important and necessary one. Those composers are no idiots, (except when it comes to giving us decent parts to play, but I won't get into that right now) and if there was a completely redundant instrument in the orchestra, they would have written it out long ago. Like I said before, violas aren't bad, they're just misunderstood.
>
> -M"as long as we're bashing instruments here: what's so great about basses? My middle school didn't have any in the orchestra and we got along just fine without them"el

I agree with the Mel. They're an octave or two higher than the cello, but they have the same strings.
For you band or non-music people:

Violin has strings G, D, A, and E
Viola has C, G, D, and A
Cello has C, G, D, and A only lower than viola
Bas has an E... uh, I forgot. A lot different, I believe, from the other three main instruments.

So, violas and violins are only a fifth and some extra wood apart.

Violas do have a unique place. If you have the first violin section playing melody, second violin section playing anti-melody, Cellos filling in the chords, and Basses keeping the beat, you still need somebody to fill in the gap between the high melodies and the low harmonies. The violas. They're the middlemen, blending the orchestra together. Sure. That sounds good.

Chris