So something of a tangential post to my entry yesterday featuring churches whose design and technology rival performing arts venues. Today’s topic– performance spaces you want to work at based on superficial qualities like the name or appearance alone. This is an audience participation post so feel free to add your dreams and stories in the comments box.
I will start mine out with a little confession. I used to hear promotions on the radio for Live at the Concertgebouw. The Concertgebouw is one of the premiere music venues in the world located in Amsterdam.
Not knowing this, however, I thought they were saying Concertebrau which I imagined was a concert hall in which Germans enjoyed their two great passions, classical music and excellent beer. I pictured Germans reclining, great steins in hand and reveling in the music. Since it was pretty much accepted gospel that Europeans had a much greater appreciation of classical music than Americans, I figured attendance was a commonplace past time at which beer was present.
My second theory was that there wasn’t a lot of beer involved, but that the Germans envisioned the creation of great music much like the crafting of a great brew–involving a lot of investment of time and balanced elements but ultimately intoxicating. That was a little more wishful thinking.
Not that the crossing of a concert and beer hall was very realistic. I was almost disappointed to learn that the real place was in Amsterdam. Can’t tell from the website if they serve beer.
The other places that have caught my imagination just on the basis of outward appearances are the Chocolate Church in Bath, Maine; Albuquerque’s KiMo Theatre with its cool interior featuring skulls with glowing eyes and swastika. Though I have never been there, I have mentioned my infatuation with the whole idea of the John Michael Kohler Arts Center a couple times in this blog. Same with Wolf Trap. I don’t know what they are like now, but long ago I got my hands on an American Players Theatre brochure and thought it had some pretty clever and enticing writing. Enough that I still think I need to get to Wisconsin one summer soon.
I am sure there are other deserving arts organizations who have been the beneficiaries of my lust at a distance, but I can’t think of them at the moment. There are a couple that have not requited my lust and thus must suffer not being mentioned.
Any places that have fired your imaginations, gentle readers, if only based on a cool name or well designed brochure?
Hi Joe. The first thing that people do nowadays is look up things on the internet. So maybe a well designed website would attract more people than a brochure. Just sayin.’ Something visually arresting, that has content relevant to the performance would be attractive. If I wanted to get more people to attend classical music concerts, I would make classical music available to the public, like a MuchMusic channel, only classier.
There are a lot of nice looking people in classical music, so why not give them the exposure that other musicians in other genres take for granted?
If attendance and interest in classical music is dwindling worldwide, the cause should be studied. One of the problems has been the socioeconomic status associated with the genre. It was seen as music only for the rich, white, upper class strata of society. I’m neither of those things, but I love this music dearly. I need to hear it every day. I regret only discovering it recently! How many people out there would LOVE classical music if only they were exposed to it? As it is, most people think that they have to tune into CBC radio or some obscure radio channel. Surely, that can’t be all there is?
Hi Gem- Thanks for the comment. I wonder if you might have misread the intent of my entry. I was basically taking a light hearted look at fantasizing about arts organizations based on superficial qualities. I apologize if I wasn’t clear in my attempt at a little levity.
Which doesn’t make any of what you said untrue. The promotion of the arts, especially classical music, is a common topic for discussion here and on many of the Inside the Arts blogs.
Haha! Sorry about that. Your anecdote about the Concertgebouw WAS pretty funny. I guess I shouldn’t read too many of the blog entries before I reply to one. 🙂