Work for nine players (5)
I believe the answer is:
nonet
'work for nine players' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
This is the entire clue.
(Other definitions for nonet that I've seen before include "Piece for group" , "Piece for nine performers" , "Instrumental group of nine players" , "Composition for nine performers" , "Music for nine instruments or voices" .)