The New York Philharmonic recently tested a new audience information prototype (covered here in the New York Times, and also in Greg Sandow’s column), that feeds notes and insights about the current performance to the folks sitting out in the seats. It’s a wireless PDA-equivalent, currently called the Concert Companion, that’s designed as a performance-enhancement gadget for those who want to know more detail about the work they’re hearing.
From the Times overview:
As the orchestra played Stravinsky’s ”Petrushka,” short paragraphs, ranging from the innocuous to the complex, flashed on the device’s screen. ”Throughout this piece, the music breaks into separate, independent blocks, each with its own rhythm, melody and sound,” one fun fact read. ”These blocks of music are a trademark of Stravinsky’s style ” Another urged concertgoers to “listen to the oboe give way to two solo violins ‹ an effortless transition.”
Mr. Sandow wrote the notes that provided this electronic ‘color commentary’. And he admits that the effort was some of the hardest writing he’s ever done.
Museums have been using audio tours and more fancy electronic equivalents for a long time now, providing those who want it with more context around their visit and the works they see. Performing arts have generally relied on program notes, with supratitle/subtitle translations of opera performances and audio description for the visually impaired the only real-time exceptions.
The trick with experience enhancements to performing arts events is that they are extremely difficult to target to individual participants. While museum-goers can wear headphones and not affect the experience of those around them, any change in a live performance space can’t really do the same. This challenge goes beyond personal technology to include any strategic intervention to change the audience or the audience experience, including price changes (that can alter the perceived value of a ticket by all audiences), modified programming (projections during a symphony performance, for example), or even changes to the trappings of tradition (informal clothing for musicians, rather than black tie). The Concert Companion may be a godsend for someone interested in learning as they listen. But it could also a distraction and an unwelcome companion for those sitting around them.
My guess is that these devices, or some future version thereof, will provide a powerful new connection to live performances for a portion of the audience (if the startup can get the business model to work), and will continue to be a thorn for those who already have profound experiences without them. It will be fascinating to watch the interplay of innovation and tradition that this device, and others coming, will foster in their audiences.
