Band Seating Chart Generator

How to make a band seating chart

1. Paste your roster. Copy Name, Instrument and Chair columns from a spreadsheet and paste them into Add players, or import a CSV or Excel file. “Last, First” is turned around, and each instrument becomes a section.
2. Lay out the sections. Choose Arcs for your sections. Each section gets its own part of the arcs around the podium, front to back: woodwinds, then brass, with percussion at the back.
3. Seat by chair order. Everyone is seated at once, first chairs first within each section. After auditions, change the chair numbers and press Smart arrange again.
4. Adjust it. Move or reshape any arc, swap two players, or lock a player’s chair so nothing moves them.
5. Print or share. Download a PDF with every name on the plan and a list for each section with chair numbers, or send a read-only link to students and parents.

The example above is a 50-player concert band in four rows of arcs, every section in chair order. Try Jazz band or a smaller band above, then press Use this layout and paste your own roster.

A concert band setup, row by row

• Front row: flutes and oboes, closest to the podium.
• Second row: clarinets, bass clarinet, bassoons and saxophones.
• Third row: horns, trumpets, trombones, euphoniums and tuba, with string bass, piano, harp and timpani at the ends.
• Back row: percussion.

That’s the order Arcs for your sections follows, and it’s a starting point, not a rule: directors set up differently for the room and the music. Drag any section’s arc to move it, and the players go with it.

Jazz band: saxes, trombones, trumpets and the rhythm section

The Jazz band example uses three straight rows: saxophones in front, trombones behind them and trumpets at the back, with piano, guitar, bass and drums together to one side. It has 17 players; add or remove chairs to match your group.

After pasting your own jazz roster, choose Seat sections in this layout in step 3 or the Add menu. It matches the instrument tags to the named rows and rhythm chairs. If a section has no matching row or too few chairs, it tells you which one needs attention before changing the plan. Keep the names Saxophones, Trombones and Trumpets on those rows so the matching can find them.

Chair order and auditions

The Chair column decides who sits where within a section: first chair, then second, and so on along the arc. After auditions or a chair challenge, change the numbers, from the roster or in each player’s details, and press Smart arrange. Lock any player who should stay put, such as a student who needs a particular chair.

Your roster from a spreadsheet

Names stay in your browser on this device; nothing is uploaded and there’s no account to create.

Put one player on each line, with the instrument repeated beside every name. For example, use Flute for all six flute players rather than mixing “Flute”, “Flutes” and “Flute section”: each distinct tag makes a separate section. Keep chair numbers in their own column, starting at 1 again for each instrument. You can check the names and columns in the import preview before adding them.

Make a change during rehearsal

On a phone, open People, tap a player and choose a chair. If someone is already sitting there, the two players swap. The list gives you the section and seat number without needing to read a small name on the floor plan. On a larger screen, select an arc to change its seat count or drag the whole section to a new position. Use Undo if the change does not work for the room.

Before a substitute arrives, search for the absent player and edit that name, or add the substitute as a new player. Check the unseated count before printing: adding a name does not add a chair. After changing chair ranks, run Smart arrange and review the result. A locked chair keeps its occupant, even when a new rank would otherwise move them.

Print it for the band room

The PDF shows the whole setup with every player’s name at their chair, then a list for each section with chair numbers. Print it on Letter or A4 for the folder cabinet, or share a read-only link so students can find their seat before rehearsal.

Save a plan file before making a version for a different concert. My plans can keep both versions on this browser, while the file lets you reopen one on another device. A shared link contains a snapshot: make a new link after changing the seating. If you only need a setup diagram, export SVG or PNG; keep the PDF’s numbered section lists for checking players into rehearsal.

See the 50-player example as a Letter PDF or an A4 PDF before building your own.

Middle school, high school and beyond

The same steps work for a beginning band of 30 or a wind ensemble of 70: more players simply means more rows. For indoor rehearsals of a marching band, seat the players by section the same way; drill charts for the field are a different job and aren’t something this tool does.

Frequently asked questions