Reply To: Band Seating

[nafmeadmin]

No, I have not seen the flutes set on the left side of the band, and clarinets set on the right.
I have never seen altos on the left side of the band but I have seen them in the middle…

One important concern is the placement of your strong players and weak players. I like your idea of two rows of flute players. This gives the second row a chance to model after the row in front of them. This would strengthen your flute section rather than weakening them by spreading them out in one long row. When choosing sides, I would not recommend putting your trumpet players behind the flute players as the sound can overwhelm them. Altos behind the clarinets sounds like a fine idea. Your ideas seem they will work in theory, but I think you will know once you put it into practice. Does the ensemble sound balanced from left to right? Can each musician hear the bass line from the tuba players? Which way do the french horns have their bell facing? Does the arrangement promote students to pay attention?
I have never personally set up a band before, but I hope some of this helps.

—
Kate
Current Music Ed. Major KSU