Posted by Mary Ann on December 18, 2002 at 11:58:40:
In Reply to: Re: Formula for full concert halls posted by MP on December 17, 2002 at 14:00:26:
Agreed, in general. We have an amatuer concert band here in Tucson, the Arizona Symphonic Winds, that does free concerts in the park in spring and fall. They are very well attended by enthusiastic audiences. I played horn in this band for a year or so, and quit because the work load was way too high for an unpaid group, and also because off beats are just not that much fun.
But this last fall I went to a couple of the concerts in the park, since it is walking distance from my house. You know what? I got to see the intense enjoyment of the audience, amidst of course the yakking and paper rattling and kid/dog running around. I decided that although this isn't the kind of concert I would usually go to, because it wasn't "classical"....it was still enjoyable, although in a different way. The musical culture is changing, as all cultures do, and I guess we have to go with the flow or mourn the loss, or both. Classical music has not been around very long compared to the history of humanity, and we should feel blessed that we have had the opportunity to have lived during the time when we can experience it.
Mary Ann