How much space does a big band need? A practical guide for ball organisers

Stage

The full orchestra needs about 10 × 8 metres. The stage has four rows: saxophones at the front, trombones behind them, trumpets at the back and the rhythm section — piano, guitar, bass guitar and drums — to the side, with the soloists standing in front of the orchestra. A smaller area means the musicians cannot hear each other and the orchestra loses its interplay.

If the hall is smaller, or you need to save, choose the Jazz Combo — it needs roughly half the space.

Sound

For the full orchestra we require a sound engineer. Twenty instruments and two voices have to meet in one balanced sound, and that is a job for a professional at the mixing desk. You have two options:

• we provide the sound engineer — we work with trusted people who know the orchestra,
• the organiser provides one — often included in the venue hire; just agree it in advance.

For smaller, intimate events we can provide the sound ourselves with our own top-quality equipment, for an extra fee.

Power

A few ordinary sockets within reach of the stage are enough. We run the rest ourselves with our own cables. No special connections are needed.

Timing of the evening

We typically play 2–3 sets of 40 minutes with twenty-minute breaks. We will not play more than three hours of music — for wind players that is at the limit of what is physically possible. The breaks always find a use in a ball programme: a dance show, a raffle, a midnight surprise, a toast.

Travel

We mainly play in West Bohemia, also travel to Central Bohemia and arrange more distant events individually. Bear in mind that transporting twenty musicians and their instruments is expensive — which is one reason we always tailor the price to the specific event.