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Divisi

Divisi is when players split, or “divide”, in order to play multiple lines of music, commonly for a

limited passage, before returning to play together, or “tutti”. Divisi passages can be notated with

all lines on a single staff or across multiple staves.

Divisi is a technique most commonly used in orchestral string writing, as the string section

typically contains a large number of players compared to the number of staves. For example,

large orchestras commonly have twelve rst violins all playing the same part most of the time.

Dividing those players into multiple parts allows composers to write more complex contrapuntal

music.

An example divisi change in a Violin I part, splitting it into two sections and a solo line

If the division is relatively simple, it is possible to write all parts on the same staff and label the

section, with an indication of how many players are required for each line if necessary. If the

parts have different rhythms at times, you can input them into separate voices on the same staff.

However, when a section is divided into multiple parts that are too different to be clearly written

on a single staff, it is necessary to divide them onto multiple staves. In Dorico SE, divisi changes

allow you not only to divide sections into any number of parts with any number of staves, but

also to include solo lines and group staves as required.

In Dorico SE, you cannot input divisi changes. However, divisi changes are shown if you import or

open a project that contains them.