Main content

Why are classical audiences so quiet?

Tom looks at how classical audiences are hooked on silence. We should, he says, relax in the concert hall, show our appreciation by clapping when we want to, and enjoy the music.

Tom looks at how modern audiences are hooked on silence in the concert hall. Citing a recent incident where the rustling of a sweet wrapper by an audience member in Malmo created a ruckus so powerful that it spilled spectacularly into a violent brawl, Tom will examine why silence is considered so important and noise so abhorrent in classical concerts.

Available now

29 minutes

Last on

Fri 18 Aug 2023 16:30

Music Played

  • Gustav Mahler

    Symphony no. 5 in C sharp minor

    Performer: Berliner Philharmoniker. Conductor: Claudio Abbado.
    • DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON.
    • DG 437-789-2.
  • Jean‐Philippe Rameau

    Platee - comedie-lyrique in 3 acts

    Performer: Carolyn Sampson. Performer: Ex Cathedra Consort. Conductor: Jeffrey Skidmore.
    • Hyperion.
    • CDA 68035.
  • Jean‐Baptiste Lully

    Armide - tragedie lyrique in a prologue and 5 acts LWV.71

    Performer: Les Talens Lyriques. Performer: Christophe Rousset.
    • Aparte.
    • AP135.
  • Antonio Vivaldi

    Concerto in E major RV.269, Op.8`1 (La Primavera) for violin and orchestra

    Performer: Enrico Onofri. Performer: Il Giardino Armonico. Conductor: Giovanni Antonini.
    • TELDEC.
    • 4509-90850-2.
  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    Symphony no. 31 in D major K.297 (Paris) (K.300a) - [either version]

    Performer: English Baroque Soloists. Conductor: Sir John Eliot Gardiner.
    • PHILIPS.
    • 420-937-2.
  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    Symphony no. 31 in D major K.297 (Paris) (K.300a) - [either version]

    Performer: English Baroque Soloists. Conductor: Sir John Eliot Gardiner.
    • PHILIPS.
    • 420-937-2.
  • Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

    Concerto no. 1 in B flat minor Op.23 for piano and orchestra

    Performer: Martha Argerich. Performer: Berliner Philharmoniker. Conductor: Claudio Abbado.
    • DG.
    • 4498162.
  • Franz Schubert

    Symphony no.5 in B Flat Major (4th mvt)

    Orchestra: L’Orfeo Barockorchester. Conductor: Michi Gaigg.
    • CPO.

Broadcasts

  • Sun 21 Apr 2019 17:00
  • Fri 26 Apr 2019 16:30
  • Fri 3 Dec 2021 16:30
  • Sun 13 Aug 2023 17:00
  • Fri 18 Aug 2023 16:30

Why do we call it 'classical' music?

Tom Service poses a very simple question (with a not-so-simple answer).

Six of the world's most extreme voices

From babies to Mongolian throat singers: whose voice is the most extreme of all?

How did the number 12 revolutionise music?

How did the number 12 revolutionise music?

How Schoenberg opened a new cosmos for composers and listeners to explore.

Why are we all addicted to bass?

Why are we all addicted to bass?

Bass is everywhere, but why do we enjoy it? Join Tom Service on a journey of discovery.

Watch the animations

Join Tom Service on a musical journey through beginnings, repetition and bass lines.

When does noise become music?

We like to think we can separate “noise” from “music”, but is it that simple?

Podcast