Seating arrangements

[RJMorris]

What are some of the different seating arrangements that bands use. We've got the cornets to the left of the conductor, flugel and tenors in front middle, baritones, euph. and trombones to the right, basses middle back, and perc. around the back perimeter. Is this the "normal" arrangement. I would be interested to see other set ups and the reasoning for them.

 

[Okiedokie of Oz]

Someone else asked this recently here:

www.themouthpiece.com/viewtopic.php?t=4676

and yes, they are mny beautiful drawings :roll:

Another seating arrangement I once saw was a slight variation on yours. Cycle the basses, euph/bari's and troms, so troms are were the euphs were, euphs are where the basses were, and basses are where the troms were.

 

[Di]

A band we used to play in would vary the arrangements according to the test piece. We would sometimes have the flug on the back row with the rep or move the euphs/baris beind the horns. It would just depend on who had more in common with whom.

 

[satchmo shaz]

yes, I change the seating according to testpiece, cramped venues etc.! :wink:

 

[midwalesman]

band seating

Bands in Britain played standing in a full circle around the conductor before an Australian band came over and played at the Nationals early last century. Apparently they walked onto stage with their chairs, set them up in a semi circle and sat down to play the test piece. Although this Aussie band didn't win some traditionalists in the audience and other bands threw a hissy fit and complained to the organisers that they should be disqualified. Subsequently, a few YEARS later British bands took up the seating organisation. Perhaps not totally relevant here but an interesting historical quirk!

 

[Okiedokie of Oz]

I always knew us Aussies were the brains of the band movement!!

 

[PeterBale]

I always knew us Aussies were the brains of the band movement!!

. . . which was why they wanted to rest them on the chairs :wink: :lol:

 

[Highams]

When Sun Life played Blitz at the RAH, we sat in reverse of the current standard formation, cornets on the right etc. Derek Bourgeois's reason being that the adjudicators box was up on the left (as you look towards the stage) that year. Though it was Chris Adey who conducted us on the day.

Back in Watney's days, the basses were brought round to where the troms are now, and the euphs and baris sent back to where the basses were. It certainly gave a lot of clarity to the bass line.

www.euph9.freeserve.co.uk

 

[Dawnys_flug]

Our set up is cornets on right, bari's/euph's in middle, basses behind them, then on the left, horns and flug and troms behind.
We used to have the traditional horns in the middle, euphs/ bari's on the right but when our md came a few years ago, he changed it and it's improved our band sound immensley!!
The balance is just right now and i think we would be uncomfortable playing in our old seating arrangement!!

 

[bruceg]

We've followed exactly the same path Dawny - found the horn sound was disappearing when they were in the middle of the band.

 

[Dawnys_flug]

Yeah that's the problem we had Bruce.
We found that the horn sound wasn't singing through enough because it got lost between the euphs etc. and the basses! It was also my first year on flugel and i was nervous and played very quietly and so the move made me sit on the end! Helped loads coz it forced me to blow loud and has improved me beyond recognition!! It's shutting me up that's the problem now!! So yeah we found that this seating plan has helped no end!!

 

[Aidan]

i dont see how moving the horns to the left would help project them, as the bells would then be facing away from the audience :?

 

[Hollso]

Just for this test peice, Rob Collinson (our conductor) has the backrow (rep 2nd and 3rd cornets) on the front row, and the solos and sop behind. It allows us to hear the trombones a bit better, and to be heard, seeing as we've got two newbies on 3rd at the moment. I find that we get a bit more attention if on the front; at open air jobs, we're always ignored on the back, nobody tells us what we're playing :? Flugel is with the horns at the moment too.
Normally, euphs and baris are behind the horns, bases behind them and then percussion. Trombones to the right of conductor, then on the left, 'backrow' cornets then the 'frontrow' cornets.

 

[eric]

Seating..

When Jazz was used for the area's a couple of years ago, some bands set up in a "dance band" style with cornets aiming straight out etc. It worked very well.

 

[Okiedokie of Oz]

i dont see how moving the horns to the left would help project them, as the bells would then be facing away from the audience :?

Horn bells (not French!!!!) always go to the player's right. Were the horns to sit under the Conductor's left arm, their bells would pace outwards.

 

[Aidan]

i think they were referring to the left "as the player sees it" i.e stage right.

 

[spookybiking]

we set up as:


front row on the right, back row behind, have seen them have it the other way round, horns in front as u look in order 2nd 1st solo flug, then on the right euphs and bari's as normal troms as normal, and basses and sop right behind the pric.

 

[Lauradoll]

i dont see how moving the horns to the left would help project them, as the bells would then be facing away from the audience :?

Great minds think alike. Was just about to make the same point.

 

[Aidan]

:idea: :lol:

 

[lynchie]

aidan? great mind? now i've heard everything... :wink: