Information About Part Assignments and Bowed String Seating



  1. Winds and Percussion Part Assignments

    1. All wind players will be rotated from piece to piece throughout the year.
    2. When there is a substantial solo part, a special round of auditions may be held.

  1. Bowed String Assignments

    1. String players are not--nor will they every be--arranged hierarchically according to audition results. Music making should always be a collaborative, never competitive, endeavor. This is the policy used in all UIUC Orchestras.
    2. Therefore:
      1. seating placement tells nothing about your audition, except that you have been partnered with someone whose strengths complement yours
      2. stronger players are positioned throughout the section, often placed the furthest away from the conductor
      3. There may be 2-3 different versions of string seating over the course of the season. We switch arrangements at least for each concert, sometimes by piece.
      4. This seating information will be reviewed at one of the initial rehearsals. It is expected to be an issue that only contributes, never detracts, from the nature of the musical experiences we are going to provide each other during our upcoming season.
      5. The first seating of each semester will be fine tuned over the course of the first 2-3 weeks of that semester in order to maximize sound projection and the efficiency of player pairings.