Orchestra

"Orchestra" is a song recorded by London recording artist Aurora Reed for her debut album Thoughts To Word (2011). The song was released as the album's second single, and the track which launched the album. The track was written by Aurora and Stargate, and produced by the latter. The track is an uptempo, synth-laden R&B and dubstep hybrid, which tells the story of finding the perfect love. The accompanying music video was directed by Anthony Mandler.

Writing and production
The song was one of the first tracks written by Aurora for her debut album, Orchestra, written in collaboration with popular r'n'b/pop production outfit Stargate. Aurora's album was primarily influenced by soul music, with sprinkles of alternative r'n'b/quiet storm, so Aurora made a conscious decision to create a banger. As soon as she heard the track, she knew it had to be the song that launched her debut album.

Release
Aurora announced that Orchestra would serve as the second single from her album Thoughts oTo Word in July, 2012 - as a consequence of fans trending Aurora's name on twitter. The track was serviced to radio on July 20th, 2011, and was released on September 26th, 2011, on both digital download and physical format. The physical and digital downloads of the single contained a remix by David Arnold - a musical producer and composer known for his movie scores such as the James Bond series. In this remix, Aurora sang over a complete orchestra.

Composition
Orchestra is primarily an R&B track, which contains influences of dubstep. It has a duration of 3 minutes and 29 seconds. Instrumentation consisted of instruments typical of dubstep production, with heavy drums, but was noted for its intense synths. MTV music commented on the tracks position as an 'unorthodox' love song, noting "Aurora talks about relationships, where the beat was messy, and all over the place. It didn't feel right, but eventually she finds the right kind of cool to play an, as she puts it herself, S-Y-M-P-H-O-N-Y for her." Digital Spy gave the track 4 out of 5 stars, saying that Aurora "Has quickly turned the tables on her angsty Burn Burn Burn attitude, swaying into a cool swag as she shouts out an ode to a lover. R&B isn't the type of music that's flourished into the UK for a while, but maybe it's time for a change up..."

Video
The video was directed by Anthony Mandler, in the first of three videos they directed together to date (including Healin' Heartbreak and Mutate).

The video was premiered on August 26th, 2011, and saw Aurora mix classical art with her own street style - based in an art gallery where Aurora draws inspiration from the likes of Cleopatra and The Garden of Eden, as well as Tarantino and Picasso. The singer was praised for her classy but innovative visual effort, which contrasted greatly with her debut video.

Format and track listing

 * Digital download
 * 1) "Orchestra" - 3:29
 * 2) "Orchestra" (David Arnold Remix) - 4:28
 * 3) "Still Weak" - 3:49


 * Physical Format
 * 1) "Orchestra" - 3:29
 * 2) "Orchestra" (David Arnold Remix) - 4:28