Benjamin

Manny,

How much does Osmo have a say in your seating positions with respect to the other sections in the orchestra? How much do you as a principal or section as a whole have in that decision making process? How much have you changed over the years? This issue is coming up often here and not always has it been a pleasant conversation.

Ben

Manny Laureano

I've sat in a great variety of places, left, right, and center and there's always a problem no matter what, it seems. At this point we try to sit right next to the bones to the diagonal right of the conductor and the timpani are on our right in the center behind the horns. the only time we change is to accomodate a chorus. Osmo has been very open and helpful in establishing this as the final set up.

Good luck,

ML

wiseone2

Stokowski used some odd ones.
The Violins, Violas and Cellos were stage right. The Basses in a single row at the rear of the stage. The winds and brass were seated stage left, facing the strings. The percussion behind the winds and brass.
Stokie loved chaos!

Wilmer

KMT

So would the woodwinds have been seated in the front row of the orchestra?

wiseone2

Right under the watchful eye of Stokie. I think he had a crush on the young first oboe...........a lady
Wilmer

robertwhite

We're struggling with this issue a bit, as we are in front of the trombones, and they are seated about a foot and a half higher than we are. Thus, their bells are aimed directly at our ears. It's not that they play too loud, but that when they play we literally cannot hear anything but them.

What was strange is that nothing happened until I joined and began complaining about it! We moved the trombones back a bit farther, so there was more distance between their bells and our heads! Actually, my colleagues (including the trombonists) say they had complained some time ago, asking for us all to be in one row, but were rebuffed by management. Apparently managements concerns were with how it all looked from the audience.

Unfortunately, this all makes my complaints look like I'm just being a pain in the a$$ to the stage managers -(e.g. "No one's complained before, why are you all of the sudden?"). Oh well. I'd rather be a pain in the a$$ than be deaf!

Benjamin

Bob,

This is exactly what is happening here. Having the bones behind us is very difficult. We fought it pretty hard and got out from in front of them. We had a hard time with the MD at the moment. The type that wishes to assert his authority instead of working WITH us to get the best result. Wilmer brought up a very good point indirectly. Music directors now don´t have as much consolidated "power" as they used to in the days of Stokowski, Toscanini, etc. I am just interested to know if it is written down in orchestra´s by-laws in the States that give a certain percentage of the decision to the MD and the section being implicated. Here we have nothing written down and each side gets to use that in their favor saying that since there isn´t anything, they should be the ones to decide. I guess I am looking for some legal precedent to help my case here.

Ben

trumpetera

Horns in front of the timps! Poor ba****ds!
A lot of conflicting sound-waves there, I'm sure!

As for sitting in "box"(trombones behind trumpets), we have to fight this every time a german or central european conductor comes in to conduct us.

Apparently it's common practise in the opera houses on the continent, mostly because of cramped orchestra pits.

We have done our fair chare (spelling?) of this, and as soon as the whole brass section plays we're too loud because we are trying to hear ourselves over the all-covering trombone sound, and they hear us play louder and therefore wants to match us!

On the other hand; timps and tam-tams right behind you....


I'm gonna start my own orchestra, and I wont let ANYONE else play in it!!!

Benjamin

Yeah, or a nice cymbal roll crescendo. That happened last season where I got stuck in from of the cymbals because of wierd spacing in the hall that we were playing in. My ears were ringing for a while after.

trumpetera

Can be pretty dangerous!!

One of my trombone playing collegues have tinitus, and it's no joke!