My teacher tells us to sit up straight, but why would the chair have an angled back? What is the correct way to sit in them?The chairs look like this:
This is exactly the chairs we use in our band. Supposedly, these chairs promote good posture and they make breathing better, but I personally like to sit at the very front of the seat, it help my posture a lot and I horrible lung capacity anyways XD So yeah, you can sit in the back of the chair, they're designed for that. You can also sit on the very front of it if you want. The article on that link you posted says, To meet the unique demands of the musical performance environment, the chair is designed band-pitched style with a seat to back angle of 97 degrees allowing for maximum breathing capacity. It is also ideal for any activity that requires your back to be in a more upright position. So I guess they know what they're talking about.
It's true: you are supposed to sit up straight, because it takes pressure off your diaphragm and you can breathe easier. It also depends on what you're playing. I play saxophone, and I find myself sitting a little bit forward on the chair, because the horn is usually between my knees, not over my lap. I have found that by keeping the horn straight, the mouthpiece fits better over the neck, and the pitch won't go out because I adjusted the mouthpiece to get the right angle on it. Also, if I'm playing a tenor, I can balance the weight of the horn on the thumb-rest (it takes some getting used to, but it works).
You should sit straight up without leaning on the back of the chair. This is because your air passes better when the air has a good pathway to travel through.
Ya my band uses those chairs. I find that when I'm sitting at the edge of my seat I get better airflow and projection. Your band instructor is right on this one (only if you play brass, woodwind, anything that's not strings). You can lean against the back of the chair if you want to and still play sufficiently but if you want to max out your lung capacity and focus then I would suggest sitting up.
you're not supposed to have your back up against the back of the chair. You're supposed to sit a little farther forward so you can sit all the way up. Granted, most people don't do that, I don't even and I have like, really good posture for a trumpet player if I may say so myself. So, to answer your question, don't lean against the back, sit kind of on the front of the chair with your back up straight.
