I spend a great deal of time on the internet (and the computer in general), but I _am_ able to break away and interact with the real world.

(Of course, then I go running back to the 'net. Oooo, here's a good one: the 'Netropolitan Opera! A-hem. Back to normal -- for what it's worth. ;^)

Essentially, the Twitter thing is no different from when I sit at said computer, listening to music (all kinds, really!), and do research about the music (well, sometimes not) as I listen. (Often, I go to Google Maps and look around at all the pictures people have attached to various sites. I guess it's somewhat akin to a "music drive" -- Bruckner and mountains, woo-hoo!)

I certainly don't mind the Twittering, as long as it doesn't interfere with other patrons' enjoyment of the performance. All too often, however, the people who just -- CAN'T -- BREAK -- AWAY -- from their electronic toys really have no _concept_ of how substantially they interfere with others' experiences while playing with the toys, so the battle's almost lost before it's fought.

I just don't know where this concept is headed -- seems like the ride's going to be rather bumpy!

But certainly interesting. TIM

De Cou *would* be the one to make this highly entertaining, whether one agrees with the concept or not. (And in any case it seems rather appropriate for Wolf Trap, no?)

Cheers & best,

jfl

Absolutely. And cheers to you, too. TIM

Ought not the experience of listening to music at a concert be a personal one---just the listener . . . listening? Only that way can any emotional responses that result be the listener’s alone. And shoudn’t conductors encourage that?

Most listeners will have perfectly legitimate responses to Beethoven’s Sixth that have little or nothing to do with de Cou’s “ideas” about the symphony. And the subconscious responses of many will be caused by countless personal factors having no relation to the sights and sounds of “a day in the country.” Shouldn’t all this be respected, and encouraged? A few “howls and scowls” from music critics wouldn’t hurt either!

Texted or twittered program notes during a concert “a great thing . . . for those folks who can't go more than a minute or two without staring down at some sort of electronic device in their hands”? I don’t think so.

Louis Torres, Co-Editor, Aristos (An Online Review of the Arts)

To tell the truth, I couldn't agree with you more. Just the thought of all those cell phones or laptops glowing in the dark on the Wolf Trap lawn during the performance disheartens me. But it's interesting to note that the palm pilot-type program-note device that a few orchestras tried out was seriously embraced by music professionals, all in the name of engaging audiences. My guess is that we will see experimentation by music organizations with every new bit of technology that comes along. Maybe something will turn out to be truly useful and non-distracting. Twitter, I suspect, won't be it. TIM

OMG can't u totally c those horse peeps smashing those grapes n then dancin around w dat fat guy w the pimp cup? #fail

And for those of us whose first language is English? TIM

Beethoven's 6th in Fantasia:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvButzoSEPk

JK. ITYK. But thanks.

I agree with Mr. Torres. At some point people have to "step up," throw away the crutches and interact directly with the artistic product, be it a painting or a symphony.

Another point is that you can do this with Beethoven's Sixth, it being a programmatic work, but you simply can't do it with most other works, which are non-programmatic. So an unsuspecting audience may be left with the misleading impression that most classical works have a programmatic "content" and all that's left is for the kind music director to explain it.

Thanks for providing the forum, Tim.

Mitch

Thanks for the comments. TIM

I'm late to the ball on this, but I have never read program notes during a performance. Although I think the intent behind this idea is sincere, it straddles the line between the ability to keep an audience hypothetically more informed than program notes while distracting said audience from the performance itself. Program notes are typically a cursory overview of a piece, composer, or performer. The only times that I listen or watch a performance and want to look at something simultaneously is during score studies.

I'm not able to attend tonight, but will be interested to read the reviews of the Twitter experiment.