Watching a Classical Concert - on applause, standing ovations, and encore
I have some things to say to Jakartan classical audience in general. Have some concert etiquettes, please. Table manners is one thing, watching a classical concert is another.
1. "In a multi-movement work, it is customary to wait until the end of the last movement to applaud, so as not to break the concentration of the performers."
In the past, when chamber music had gone beyond saloons and churches, it was normal, even flattering, if a round of applause is heard after one movement. Composers like Beethoven or Brahms would then know they had nailed it. This rule of "no applause" began to develop over the 20th century.
Personally, I'm more for the non-clapping, but occasionally there are some profoundly moving performances that just call for it. However, these are very special. (I don't put up the lighter over my head in every rock concert, only the exciting ones.) I like silence better, it keeps the symphony as one piece, without unnecessary breaks between movements. "It sustains tension between the different components of the piece and makes the ending more satisfying." (second paragraph, this page)
2. Standing ovations and calls for an encore is ideally an expression of our utmost appreciation for excellence. John Gay in 1714 wrote that "Praising all alike is praising none." Standing ovation is not obligatory, but sometimes it happens that I weren't impressed while everybody in my row is on their feet - well, keep other people's feelings in the equation as long as it doesn't totally contradict your taste.
Today, most performers would have one or two pieces prepared for encore, or they would play a movement from one of the pieces performed. José Carerras and Sumi Jo, in their live in Athens in 2005, payed off the public's adoration with 8 encore. That would have been a very deserving show.
3. Stay seated at least until the lights are on. Better still until all the bouquets had been given, as it is almost customary for the conductor, concertmaster, and soloist to receive flowers as a token of gratitude perhaps from the sponsor or other patrons (or matrons!). If the show was very good, stay around clapping, maybe they'd perform more pieces. This is addressing what happened at the Nusantara Symphony concert I watched on Saturday. A good half of the room jumped to their feet right after the final swing of the conductor's baton, even before the lights were on.
What's up with that, yo!
All these rules, they may seem superficial and all, especially because it's classical music, it's European, it's not even part of our Indonesian tradition, but even in a Linkin' Park concert you'd wait until the five of them has faced the audience and bowed. Or a wayang kulit show; it's good manners to wait for the dalang to stand up and leave his stage. In this matter I am a snob, but staying seated until the orchestra (or band, or singer) had left their place is basic mannerism, like eating spaghetti with a fork.
Maybe next time they should provide a booklet on how the audience is expected to behave. After all, it wasn't that hard to train people to keep their mobile on silent mode and in their bag/pocket during a movie. Which brings to mind the French string quartet I saw last week - their lead violinist actually went off the stage after the first song to tell a man sitting in the front row to stop rustling the plastic bag because the noise was distracting. The lead violinist did that to the relieve of the rest of the audience because we were also annoyed by that.
1. "In a multi-movement work, it is customary to wait until the end of the last movement to applaud, so as not to break the concentration of the performers."
In the past, when chamber music had gone beyond saloons and churches, it was normal, even flattering, if a round of applause is heard after one movement. Composers like Beethoven or Brahms would then know they had nailed it. This rule of "no applause" began to develop over the 20th century.
Personally, I'm more for the non-clapping, but occasionally there are some profoundly moving performances that just call for it. However, these are very special. (I don't put up the lighter over my head in every rock concert, only the exciting ones.) I like silence better, it keeps the symphony as one piece, without unnecessary breaks between movements. "It sustains tension between the different components of the piece and makes the ending more satisfying." (second paragraph, this page)
2. Standing ovations and calls for an encore is ideally an expression of our utmost appreciation for excellence. John Gay in 1714 wrote that "Praising all alike is praising none." Standing ovation is not obligatory, but sometimes it happens that I weren't impressed while everybody in my row is on their feet - well, keep other people's feelings in the equation as long as it doesn't totally contradict your taste.
Today, most performers would have one or two pieces prepared for encore, or they would play a movement from one of the pieces performed. José Carerras and Sumi Jo, in their live in Athens in 2005, payed off the public's adoration with 8 encore. That would have been a very deserving show.
3. Stay seated at least until the lights are on. Better still until all the bouquets had been given, as it is almost customary for the conductor, concertmaster, and soloist to receive flowers as a token of gratitude perhaps from the sponsor or other patrons (or matrons!). If the show was very good, stay around clapping, maybe they'd perform more pieces. This is addressing what happened at the Nusantara Symphony concert I watched on Saturday. A good half of the room jumped to their feet right after the final swing of the conductor's baton, even before the lights were on.
What's up with that, yo!
All these rules, they may seem superficial and all, especially because it's classical music, it's European, it's not even part of our Indonesian tradition, but even in a Linkin' Park concert you'd wait until the five of them has faced the audience and bowed. Or a wayang kulit show; it's good manners to wait for the dalang to stand up and leave his stage. In this matter I am a snob, but staying seated until the orchestra (or band, or singer) had left their place is basic mannerism, like eating spaghetti with a fork.
Maybe next time they should provide a booklet on how the audience is expected to behave. After all, it wasn't that hard to train people to keep their mobile on silent mode and in their bag/pocket during a movie. Which brings to mind the French string quartet I saw last week - their lead violinist actually went off the stage after the first song to tell a man sitting in the front row to stop rustling the plastic bag because the noise was distracting. The lead violinist did that to the relieve of the rest of the audience because we were also annoyed by that.