Orchestra Structure
How an Orchestra Is Arranged
Why every section sits exactly where it does.
An orchestra's seating plan isn't arbitrary - it's arranged by loudness, blend, and visibility, from the quietest instruments at the front to the loudest at the back.
Conductor
Audience
The string family sits closest to the conductor and audience, since bowed strings are the quietest section and there are the most players to fit - first violins typically to the conductor's left, seconds beside them, then violas, with cellos and double basses curving around to the right. The woodwind family sits just behind the strings, in the center. The brass family, by far the loudest section, sits further back still, and percussion - loudest of all when it plays, though it plays least often - sits at the very back.
This arrangement also reflects blend: sections that need to lock together tightly (like the string sections) sit close together and close to the conductor, while the loudest instruments are placed where their volume won't overwhelm everyone in front of them. Exact layouts vary somewhat between orchestras and conductors, but this front-to-back, quiet-to-loud logic holds almost everywhere.
How many players?
A full symphony orchestra might have around 100 players. The strings make up well over half: perhaps 16 first violins, 14 second violins, 12 violas, 10 cellos, and 8 double basses. Behind them sit two to four each of flutes, oboes, clarinets, and bassoons, then around four horns, three trumpets, three trombones, and a tuba, with the timpani and several percussionists at the back. Our guide to symphony and chamber orchestras compares this with smaller ensembles.
Who sits where, and why
Within each section, seating follows rank. The principal player of each section sits at the front of it, nearest the audience or conductor, and plays the solos. The leader of the first violins, the concertmaster, sits just to the conductor's left and acts as the link between the conductor and the players. String players share a music stand in pairs, called desks.
Instruments that appear only in some pieces have their own regular spots. The harp usually sits on the conductor's left, near the violins, and a piano or celesta is placed wherever it's needed. In a concerto, the soloist stands or sits at the front, beside the conductor. When a choir takes part, it usually stands on risers behind the orchestra.
Variations on the layout
The layout above is the common "American" arrangement, with violins grouped together on the left - popularized in the 1920s by the conductor Leopold Stokowski. Many orchestras, especially when playing music from before the 20th century, use the older "European" or antiphonal layout, with first violins on the left and second violins on the right, facing each other, so that passages tossed between them can be heard bouncing across the stage. In opera, the orchestra plays in a sunken pit in front of the stage, often in a more compressed arrangement.
Where to sit in the audience
Different seats give different experiences. Seats in the middle of the hall, a little way back, usually give the most balanced sound. Seats close to the stage feel immediate but can be dominated by the strings, and seats high up or behind the orchestra are often cheaper and let you watch the conductor's face and the players up close.
Where to start listening: Britten's The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra introduces each section of the orchestra in turn (woodwinds, strings, brass, then percussion), a handy way to learn each family's sound before picking it out in this seating chart.