Why does an orchestra have many people playing the same instruments? How does it add to the overall performance?
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People are missing the obvious. Orchestras predate sound systems. They were the loudest musical event most people in the western world would experience in their life. Several fellow playing the same line is much louder than one and can be heard clearly throughout the venue.
The other aspects are side effects.
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Because they’re not all playing the same notes. It allowed for multiple movements at a time, producing a more dynamic presentation. Or when they are playing the same notes at the same time, it creates depth.
Trumpets are absurdly loud. In a 1:1 sound-off between any given string or wind instrument and trumpet Trumpet would completely dominate. Now imagine you need 5 violins playing the same thing to overcome the trumpet. But now you need 2 or 3 trumpets to play harmony, so now you need 15 violins… look you see where I’m going right? Trumpets (prep you Jean Ralpheo voice) are the WOOORRRRSSSTTTTTT
You place the horsehair of your bow atop the violin string and pull. The rosin effects a friction that causes the string to vibrate. This vibration resonates through the cavity of the violin to produce a sound quite different than the simple sine wave of the string’s vibration. It makes a sound that is beautiful and pleasant and musical, reflective of the unique characteristics of the violin’s constituent wood and of the exact shape and size of the resonant cavity within.
Ten people place the horsehairs of their bows atop their strings and pull. They are all playing the same note. Their violins are the same size–or are they? They are almost the same size, but not quite; the margin of error in manufacturing is small, but greater than zero. The violins are made of different wood from different trees, each with its own voice. Each performer is pulling their bow at a slightly different speed. Their fingers are all placed expertly on the exact spot they need to be placed on their fingerboards, but as the violin is a fretless instrument, each finger is placed very slightly differently to all the rest, offering a barely discernible difference in pitch.
The pitch and timbre of each individual tone is unique among the rest. Combined, they are far louder than any one of them could be alone; this is vital in eras before (and venues without) electronic sound reinforcement. But this is not all; combined, they offer variegated and living ideas as to the interpretation of the sterile and static sheet music in front of them. Together, they are something different than they could ever be apart. They are the choir to the soloist; they have crowdsourced greatness.
Generally, the main reason is that having more instruments playing the same part creates a richer sound, but there are multiple reasons that vary for different instruments.
For example you have three trumpets, and they often play different parts (different melodies that harmonize with each other) but they can also play the same part, then that melody will usually be heard over the rest of the orchestra.
Now, the instrument that there are the most of in an orchestra is the violin. There are usually around 30 violinists. They are usually only divided into two parts (but can be divided further) so you often have 14 instruments on the same part. One of the reasons is as I’ve mentioned richness, but another is that brass instruments like trumpets are so much freaking louder than strings so having more strings creates a more balanced sound.
Edit: typical number of violins.
Edit 2: clarity
An alternative answer to the others, most of which assume the musicians are playing different parts – when playing the same part, it adds a more layered/textured effect, like a “chorus” pedal for a guitar. When recording guitar, for example, you’d often record multiple tracks of the same part for a fuller sound. Even copying/pasting the same recording but moving one ever so slightly out of sync has the same effect. It makes a huge difference, and without these layers it’d sound quite thin and underwhelming.
You could even compare it to a crowd chanting the same song at a soccer game vs one lonesome chap.
Usually those instruments won’t be playing the same thing. For example, you might have one set of violins playing the main melody, another set of violins playing a harmony of that, and another set playing a higher/Lower harmony. If the instruments are playing the same part, it’s usually a choice to add more of one particular timbre (the sound of the instrument for lack of a better explanation)
related question: why there is no orchestra of electric guitars?
And usually, no matter how many violins or tubas you have, you only need one piccolo player. That tiny little flute can dominate the entire band.
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