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Friday 27 April 2012

Is classical music really just for the elderly?

I was lucky enough this week to go to a concert given by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.  I say ‘lucky’ because they were playing in a local town, which meant I got to hear great music without the pain and expense of having to make a trip into London.  

For me, although I love listening to classical music, I do so enjoy studying the musicians.  There was the lady with the elegant dress who kept such a straight back through the whole performance.  There was another who sat in a more dynamic pose, resting on her tall, shiny stilettos.  There was the man who couldn’t help smiling while he was playing, almost lifting out his seat with enjoyment.  The pianist was fascinating.  If I hadn’t been able to see her hands actually moving along the keys I’m not sure I’d believe it was possible that a real, live person was actually making the music.  

But, for me, the percussionists will always be good value.  Nothing amuses me more than someone playing a drum that’s almost as big as a bear.  I was sad when at the end they all stood up and there was a man with a triangle that was sat off to the side and I hadn’t seen him.  I mean, how often do you get to see someone play the triangle?  I was also really pleased to see so much use of the cymbals in this performance.  Too often these guys have to sit there all night, turning the pages all for one go at the crescendo of a piece.  Not this guy though, he was banging and crashing all the way through.  It was great.

The only real sad thing was that the audience was made up almost entirely of people over the age of 55 years old.  We saw 5 people under 15 and although there may have been more, they were certainly in the minority.  Equally lacking was anyone in their 20’s and those in their 30’s were sparse, usually accompanying an older parent.  It was good to feel so young I suppose, but it felt we were out of place as much as we might at a JLS concert at our age.  I remain curious.  Are concert halls in London still full of students and young people?  Was it just representative of the demographic in the town here?  Do they not enjoy a night out of people watching? Let me know your thoughts.

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