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GENERAL REQUIREMENTS

• Sturdy armless chairs need to be placed in a cleared area, ready for the musicians to use, at each location where you are wanting the musicians to perform. Failure to do this will mean the musicians will be unable to perform until suitable chairs are provided or moved.

• Adequate lighting for all the musicians to read music must be provided.

LOCATION

• For ensembles with easily portable acoustic instruments, such as a string quartets. Moving can be done quickly and relatively easily. Have somewhere close by where they can put their instrument cases.

• For ensembles with hard to move acoustic instruments, such as a harp or pianist.

  Moving a harp takes some time (it has to be wrapped, loaded onto a trolley, moved, unloaded, unwrapped.) Steps can be difficult, stairs probably not possible. Most harpists will not take their instruments outdoors except under the best possible conditions. (See Preparing for outdoor events-considerations & requirements.) So, give thought to how and where to have your harpist.  Pianists using a venues 'real' piano can't move location. If using an electric piano, at best it is as difficult as moving a harp, at worst it can be impractical if it is a large instrument or is plugged into a full PA system

• The location of an acoustic ensemble is important, as volume is limited.

  There are few problems in a church or venue where people aren't making a lot of noise, but needs planning when playing in a noisy environment, such as during a meal or drinks reception.

  In a dining room put the ensemble as central as possible to the guests, so all can hear equally well. The ensemble can then regulate their sound level so be audible and comfortable for all. Don't stick the ensemble at the far end of a room. The sound will then be too loud for some guests and too soft for others.

  In a marquee, or acoustically dead room of a modern hotel, place the ensemble on a hard dance floor or against a reflective hard wall, to radiate the sound. In a marquee, which deadens sound, it is particularly important to have the ensemble close to and central to the guests.

  When playing outdoors, the sound volume is finite, so place the ensemble against the wall of a building, on a hard patio, anywhere that sound is reflected towards the guests. Don't stick them at the far end of the garden under trees, with bushes behind them; you won't hear them well

• How much room does the ensemble need?

  This depends on the ensemble. For a string quartet, they can squash into a space as small as 2.5m by 2m, but consider what is happening around them. If people are milling around the quartet, they are likely to knock into music stands and instruments,  if people are eating, they may not want the instruments playing right into their ears. So think about giving them rather more space than this, and a location where they are safe from being knocked. An instrument like a harp may take up only a 2m by 1.5 m, but the same considerations apply as to a string quartet or for that matter any other similar group or soloist.

OUTDOOR PERFORMANCE

An outdoor performance should consider all the above plus issues covered on the Outdoor performance page