Message #1504

[Neil McGowan]

You're absolutely right, of course!

There is an unpleasant atmosphere of cultural "ownership" or tenure among a certain class of concertgoers, who believe this music is uniquely theirs - they determine when applause may be awarded, they determine how one should dress for the concert ("a sense of occasion", said one particular fogey), and they even believe that certain sections of the Royal Albert Hall arena promenade area are uniquely "theirs", and outsiders are unwelcome.  Yet these same numpties also believe it's jolly good fun to shout "heave-ho!" when the venue staff are moving the piano.  In short, they bring their public-school prefect mentality with them to concerts, and probably never shake off these juvenile mannerisms for their rest of their lives.

It's all affectation - no such concert manner was practiced in the earlier C19th or before. It arises from the times when an unschooled middle class first began to attend concerts, and believed they needed to be on their best behaviour in front of their masters ;)