The Concert Hall Experience by Music Director Michael Christie
My thanks to Rob Simonds for providing links to some fantastic and very sophisticated arts blogs. I must admit I haven't had the opportunity to dive into this world much before now, but knew there was a need for us to participate on some level as quickly as possible. We will be looking at this ever lengthening narrative to see how it can be developed and organized to be more effective. Granted this forum is only 4 days versus the years others have been running. I think we are off to a remarkable start.
Thank you Grayce, for your questions about getting the word out. Without saying one is more important that the other, people attending the concerts are a very important part of that effort. You, the concertgoer are there experiencing it and have the first hand knowledge I know I'd rely on if I was interested in attending. I can see a sub section of this blog being devoted to the concert experience from the audience perspective. The beauty of the Web is that there is no "word count" limitation like a newspaper would have or political or ethical bias restriction that says if you cover one art form you have to spread the wealth. This forum is about the symphony. The symphony informed by its community and the symphonic communities around the world.
I hope that people like yourselves will post a review of the concerts as you see it so that others will benefit from knowing what was introduced, how the artistic efforts are developing and what the reaction is.
This leads me back to the concert hall where my experience and training feel most at home. (This strikes me as similar to having a discussion about paying back the National Debt. It's so easy to brush off but in the back of one's mind the monster looms, doesn't it?!) Let's assume someone heard about a performance by some means and has decided to attend. From the moment they decide to attend to the moment they return from the event they should have the opportunity to interface with the experience. Let's put some scenarios on the table and start discussing adjustments to fine tune them.
I just heard about a concert from the guy in the cubicle next to mine. Sounds interesting. He's been going to the symphony for about 3 years and tells me change is afoot and I should bring my wife along next time he and his partner go. I go to the orchestra's website. What information do I seek?
I went to a young people's concert ages ago when I was in school so I at least know what an orchestra looks like and sounds like. On the otherhand, I was sick that day and missed the concert and have no idea. What information do I seek to be sure I don't look like an unsophisticated person compared to my wife who has been to symphony AND opera performances throughout her life with her parents?
Can I download some of the music for my drive home so that I have some idea of what the music will sound like? How about a podcast by the conductor giving "program notes" about that performance so I can throw in some witty remark that will impress my wife as we wait in the line to park the car? Is there something we can listen to during the drive to the hall that will prep us for the concert?
We park the car and walk to the hall. What should I see? Beautiful pictures of the instruments, the players, the conductor or guest artist? The actual performers standing outside of the hall welcoming me to the show? Is the opportunity to say hello and ask a quick question important? What should I hear? A chamber music group playing representative music from the performance about to start? The preconcert discussion in the concert hall? That discussion in smaller groups throughout the lobby?
Everyone takes their seat. What should happen now? What is the best way to deal with the logistical announcements? I've read about Intermission Insights on the web. Is it happening? Where is it? When does the orchestra tell me what is going on?
Is having some comment about the music from the conductor important? When does that happen?Do we empty the stage a couple of minutes before the start of the show and have the conductor go through the logistical issues and make comments followed by a grand entrance of the orchestra and commencement of the performance? Too fussy?
Is Keeping Score helpful? What should the content be so that this new person benefits and the 40 year concertgoer can learn something they never knew?Where does video fit in? What is shown?
Let's sort out intermission. I find intermissions utterly boring which is why I started Intermission Insights. What is the experience in the lobby? How does that connect or not to the concert? Do we place orders for drinks and have them delivered during the interviews so that you the listener can have his/her cake and eat it at the same time? What do I want to learn during those interviews? Does more time need to be allocated for audience questions rather than having the conductor ask the bulk of the questions? What happens after intermission?
What happens after the performance? Do I enter the lobby on my way out and find orchestra members and the guest artist there to wish me a good night and answer more of my questions? Remember I really want to impress my wife and my cubicle neighbor with something I observed during the concert! "Wow, it's amazing what happens when a string breaks on an instrument. A whole process kicks in." I feel smug. My wife gives me an approving pat.
I'm in the car on the way home. Is there something on the radio I can hear that will round out the experience? A post concert podcast? Or a broadcast on a local radio station?
What happens when I get home? Is the website set up so I can repeat the cycle? How can I let others know about how I felt? SoundPost?
It's Sunday morning and I'm having a bit of fun setting up this scenario. Hopefully you can see all of the critical junctures where we can go down one road or the other. There are others. You experience them when you come. Think outside the box.
Please, think about this. Map it out in your own mind. Perhaps after all is said and done we end up with the exact format we have today. I seriously doubt this but anything is a possibility at this point.
Thank you Grayce, for your questions about getting the word out. Without saying one is more important that the other, people attending the concerts are a very important part of that effort. You, the concertgoer are there experiencing it and have the first hand knowledge I know I'd rely on if I was interested in attending. I can see a sub section of this blog being devoted to the concert experience from the audience perspective. The beauty of the Web is that there is no "word count" limitation like a newspaper would have or political or ethical bias restriction that says if you cover one art form you have to spread the wealth. This forum is about the symphony. The symphony informed by its community and the symphonic communities around the world.
I hope that people like yourselves will post a review of the concerts as you see it so that others will benefit from knowing what was introduced, how the artistic efforts are developing and what the reaction is.
This leads me back to the concert hall where my experience and training feel most at home. (This strikes me as similar to having a discussion about paying back the National Debt. It's so easy to brush off but in the back of one's mind the monster looms, doesn't it?!) Let's assume someone heard about a performance by some means and has decided to attend. From the moment they decide to attend to the moment they return from the event they should have the opportunity to interface with the experience. Let's put some scenarios on the table and start discussing adjustments to fine tune them.
I just heard about a concert from the guy in the cubicle next to mine. Sounds interesting. He's been going to the symphony for about 3 years and tells me change is afoot and I should bring my wife along next time he and his partner go. I go to the orchestra's website. What information do I seek?
I went to a young people's concert ages ago when I was in school so I at least know what an orchestra looks like and sounds like. On the otherhand, I was sick that day and missed the concert and have no idea. What information do I seek to be sure I don't look like an unsophisticated person compared to my wife who has been to symphony AND opera performances throughout her life with her parents?
Can I download some of the music for my drive home so that I have some idea of what the music will sound like? How about a podcast by the conductor giving "program notes" about that performance so I can throw in some witty remark that will impress my wife as we wait in the line to park the car? Is there something we can listen to during the drive to the hall that will prep us for the concert?
We park the car and walk to the hall. What should I see? Beautiful pictures of the instruments, the players, the conductor or guest artist? The actual performers standing outside of the hall welcoming me to the show? Is the opportunity to say hello and ask a quick question important? What should I hear? A chamber music group playing representative music from the performance about to start? The preconcert discussion in the concert hall? That discussion in smaller groups throughout the lobby?
Everyone takes their seat. What should happen now? What is the best way to deal with the logistical announcements? I've read about Intermission Insights on the web. Is it happening? Where is it? When does the orchestra tell me what is going on?
Is having some comment about the music from the conductor important? When does that happen?Do we empty the stage a couple of minutes before the start of the show and have the conductor go through the logistical issues and make comments followed by a grand entrance of the orchestra and commencement of the performance? Too fussy?
Is Keeping Score helpful? What should the content be so that this new person benefits and the 40 year concertgoer can learn something they never knew?Where does video fit in? What is shown?
Let's sort out intermission. I find intermissions utterly boring which is why I started Intermission Insights. What is the experience in the lobby? How does that connect or not to the concert? Do we place orders for drinks and have them delivered during the interviews so that you the listener can have his/her cake and eat it at the same time? What do I want to learn during those interviews? Does more time need to be allocated for audience questions rather than having the conductor ask the bulk of the questions? What happens after intermission?
What happens after the performance? Do I enter the lobby on my way out and find orchestra members and the guest artist there to wish me a good night and answer more of my questions? Remember I really want to impress my wife and my cubicle neighbor with something I observed during the concert! "Wow, it's amazing what happens when a string breaks on an instrument. A whole process kicks in." I feel smug. My wife gives me an approving pat.
I'm in the car on the way home. Is there something on the radio I can hear that will round out the experience? A post concert podcast? Or a broadcast on a local radio station?
What happens when I get home? Is the website set up so I can repeat the cycle? How can I let others know about how I felt? SoundPost?
It's Sunday morning and I'm having a bit of fun setting up this scenario. Hopefully you can see all of the critical junctures where we can go down one road or the other. There are others. You experience them when you come. Think outside the box.
Please, think about this. Map it out in your own mind. Perhaps after all is said and done we end up with the exact format we have today. I seriously doubt this but anything is a possibility at this point.
8 Comments:
It is interesting that it is only very recently that those people who make the policy that shapes how we experience classical music are actually putting themselves in the shoes of people who actually buy the tickets.
I buy tickets to various arts events and have for a while. As a member of that "target, future audience" I would like to use this forum to help us articulate where the holes are, both obvious and not so. I'm not putting my thoughts on display so that people can merely be happy or unhappy that they are there. Take a part of the experience I've described or another part that impacts you and describe what about it works and what would enhance that component for you. This definitely should be a community effort so let's get analyzing.
Many of my initial thoughts clearly were inspired by the fact that people spend a whole lot of time in their cars getting to and from where ever they are going. It strikes me that for such a relatively social experience going to a concert is, there is a substantial part of the time someone has allocated to the entirety of the experience that happens in total or nearly total isolation. Can the trip to and from the concert be an integral part of preparing for the concert and debriefing afterward? What would you benefit from?
It's obvious that you've put a lot of thought into the concert experience, and I'm glad to see these ideas being explored. Here are some responses to the points that you brought up:
If I were a new concertgoer, I'd be looking for information about many things on the orchestra's web site. The first thing I'd be looking for is where to park, preferably with suggestions as to which lots are closest to Symphony Hall. I'd want more than just a map; I'd want the web site to tell me that the Regency Garage is closest, followed by the Collier Center. I'd also want to know if any garages were expected to be full before the time that I might be arriving for the concert. I wouldn't expect real-time parking reports, but details about the general parking situation would be helpful. Or, if I didn't have a car, I'd want to know which bus to take and which stop to use. In the future, I'd want to know which light-rail station was closest to Symphony Hall and how often the trains run at that time of night.
I'd also want to know how to dress. I wouldn't want to worry that I might get to the concert hall and find myself dressed inappropriately for the occasion.
After that, it would also be nice to read a brief overview of what to expect when I got to the concert. This would probably include an overview of the pre-concert "rituals" such as the entrance of the concertmaster and the tuning-up of the orchestra. Long-time subscribers understand all of this, but imagine how it would look to someone who was setting foot in a concert hall for the first time: Why was that one seat empty? And why does the guy who sits in that seat come in separately? What was that thing they did with their instruments after he came on stage, and why did that one instrument play the note first? Which instrument was that, anyway? And now that I've started listening to the performance, why isn't anyone clapping after the "ending" of the piece?
Another nice feature would be brief samples of the music that will be performed. I think Chicago and Los Angeles have samples on their web sites. A carefully chosen snippet of music could help to increase interest in the concert. It might also be nice to have some brief program notes on the web site so I can begin to anticipate what I'll be hearing. I don't just want to go to the concert on Saturday night; I want to learn enough about it in advance so that I'll be looking forward to it all week.
A pre-concert podcast is a great idea, though I never thought I'd see the term "podcast" used in the same sentence with "Phoenix Symphony." This would be a great opportunity to provide more samples of the music and to "take it apart" by discussing some technical details of the piece. Music education is sadly lacking in schools nowadays. Even simple things that we take for granted such as the traditional four-movement structure of a symphony could be a complete mystery to a first-time audience member.
The pre-concert discussions are always informative, but it can sometimes be difficult to get home from work, change clothes and get to Symphony Hall by 6:30 on a Thursday. Maybe having the discussion in the lobby, and starting it a bit later, would improve attendance. I personally enjoy the lectures that discuss the music that will be played at that night's concert. It's nice to spend some time listening to a guest artist talk about his or her career, but those lectures don't do much to help audience members understand what they are about to hear. I recently attended a performance in Los Angeles, and that pre-concert lecture involved samples of music that were used to help listeners understand the performance of Mahler 5 that they were about to hear. I'd love to see a lecture like that before each Phoenix Symphony concert.
After getting this far, I realize that comments from the conductor probably help much more than they hurt. I had mentioned that these comments might not fit in with the atmosphere of a Classics concert, but perhaps that was a hasty conclusion. I really like the idea of emptying the stage, allowing the conductor to make the announcements, and then having the orchestra make a grand entrance. I don't think it would be "fussy" at all.
The opportunity to say hello to the performers and ask quick questions would help audience members to feel like they were part of the action. Obviously the performers have busy schedules and they need time to warm up, so it might not be practical to do this for every concert. But it could be a great idea to have a few concerts each year in which some of the performers were available in the lobby before the performance. Or perhaps it would be better to have a couple of concerts in which the performers and the conductor were available in the lobby after the performance so that audience members could talk to them about the concert.
Keeping Score is very helpful, especially for novice concertgoers. I think that the overall content is great as it is, and could only be improved by more coverage of music theory. It may not need to be all things to all people; a 40-year veteran concertgoer may choose simply to ignore it altogether. In my mind, Keeping Score is most useful as a tool for those who are unfamiliar with the pieces that are being performed. For example, I looked over the Keeping Score notes for Mahler 1, but I didn't follow along with them since I'm very familiar with the piece. But last season, I followed along with the notes for Sibelius 2. Those Keeping Score notes helped me to appreciate and enjoy the music of a composer whose work I had usually avoided in the past.
The video screen turned out much better than I expected, but it has to be confined to showing close-ups of the on-stage action and/or Keeping Score line numbers. I have this terrible fear that the video screen might someday be used to project nature scenes or some other nonmusical content. To put it bluntly, that would be a disaster.
After the concert, I think that SoundPost is a great place for feedback and follow-up. Perhaps you could post your thoughts about the performance the next day, and then we could participate by posting our own comments and feedback.
In conclusion, I'll reiterate my opinion that education is a key to helping audience members enjoy concert performances. Most people who attend a concert for the first time are going because they want to hear "pretty music." I think that by helping these listeners to understand the music that they are listening to -- not just in terms of emotion but also in terms of form, structure and theory -- they will be less intimidated by the experience and more likely to keep coming back.
Thanks again for your efforts to improve the concert experience and for your willingness to consider our feedback.
well, for what its worth -- you are all too long winded. there is no way at symphony hall to get away from talking talking talking. I go to listen to the music and then the talking is impossible to escape.
The intermission interviews are a nice touch, but piping the sound into the lobby (and bathrooms!) forces everyone to listen even if they are not interested, and makes conversation (a valid intermission activity) difficult if not impossible. Bad idea.
I like what you're doing, and this feedback system is a great idea.
Regarding the concert hall performance and Maestro's idea of delivering drinks to seats at intermission, if drinks were simply available in the balcony portals, it would be easy for those who want them to get them. Congestion is just too much on the main floor. There is not enough time to go down from the balcony, stand in the long lines, enjoy a beverage, and return to your seat before the start of the next part of the program. Please talk to the managers of Symphony hall about this easy answer.
Michael Christie said at the beginning of this chain, "I find intermissions utterly boring, which is why I started Intermission Insights." Sorry, but some of us like to use intermissions to chat with friends, have a drink, and otherwise break up the concert experience. Doing so has become very difficult now that Intermission Insights (which may or may not be insightful; e.g., the content-free celebrity-oriented example on 9/10/06) are drummed into our ears from speakers almost everywhere -- even in the rest rooms! Please give it a rest, at least on Thursdays. My friend and I come to the pre-concert lectures, which is where I believe the discussions belong.
Grayce
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