Alex Ross - The Classical Concert

Enjoyable though it was, the Royal Philharmonic Society annual lecture from the author Alex Ross felt like something of a missed opportunity. That's not to say we learned nothing from his understated piece, but that the audience didn't go away feeling new resolve for classical concerts to try new methods of development.

Through his lecture entitled 'Inventing and Reinventing The Classical Concert', Ross gave us a potted history of applause. We heard how the premiere of Mozart’s 'Paris' symphony was disrupted – in a good way – by the audience clapping and enjoying the composer's pranks of orchestration. We then heard how Serge Koussevitsky rounded on his own audience for applauding between movements, part of a perceived climate where the maestro conductors looked after not just the orchestra but the audience too. We didn’t hear about 'The Rite Of Spring', whose premiere Ross sets up so compellingly in his outstanding book 'The Rest Is Noise', nor famous examples of outrage that greeted premieres by Schoenberg, Cage or Steve Reich.

There was the intriguing idea of classical music's acoustic properties versus pop’s electronics, as well as the thought that coughing, sighing and shushing are all bad things. Yet while these explorations were worthwhile, there were no solutions of substance, little suggestion as to how classical music can get round the problem.

For me the problem narrows to two things in particular – freedom of expression, and respect of other people's tastes. These vary from one venue to another and from one ensemble's concerts to another. Regular UK concert goers will expect more audience freedom for concerts by the Britten Sinfonia, for instance, than they will from the English Chamber Orchestra. The audiences are – without discriminating – very different, but there is still some overlap. Some people are flexible enough to enjoy both approaches, others prefer to stick to one approach. Both viewpoints are valid, and there must be room for both in concert going.

Where I have a real problem with classical concerts is the way they often discourage newcomers. If I was taking someone to a concert for the first time, I would choose my ensemble, repertoire and venue carefully, because before you even get to the music, and the challenges that offers, you have to acquaint yourself with some often bizarre audience etiquette. It's a bit like going to church, and having the need of a sixth sense to know when to stand up, sit down, sing, kneel or speak – and all of that while the performer leaves the stage and comes back on. Not as easy as it sounds!

So how can classical music get round it? The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment offer a sound solution – a regular concert experience in their company might now involve a pre-concert talk, the concert itself, and the 'Night Shift', where potted highlights of the concert are performed again, and elements of the music are taken outside into the bar, mingling with the audience through improvisation.

Some ensembles are using websites to their enormous advantage too. The London Philharmonic Orchestra allows you to listen to the music before the concert, which is a huge plus given the explorations their programmes promise at the moment.

Ultimately, then, the Ross lecture raised more questions than it did answers – but that of course makes it a success, as that's what this sort of event is supposed to do.