Austin360 blogs > Out & About > Archives > 2009 > November > 23 > Entry
Austin Symphony at the Long Center
“These are the listening seats,” said the patron next to me.
Mike and Emma Muniz
Indeed, the sound for the Austin Symphony Orchestra is rich, crisp and warm — altogether — in the Dell Hall mezzanine at the Long Center. You don’t benefit from onstage facial expressions, but I’ll take the music any day.
Caroline Crichlow-Ball and Marc Boyd
Judging from the behavior of my cohorts, the assembled drank up the translucent Mendelssohn and the transcendent Ratliff, the second accomplished with the impeccable Conspirare symphonic choir. (Which city is so lucky to have a Peter Bay, a Craig Hella Johnson and a Richard Buckley as conductors for its professional performing arts?) Read Jeanne Claire van Ryzin’s formal review of the concert.
Jennifer Smith and Betsy Knotts
The number of empty seats physically pained me. It always does. Upstairs, downstairs, everywhere, empty seats. The recession? Disinterest? Weak marketing? Guess we won’t be earning an extra Sunday matinee any time soon.
Joseph Diiorio and Coby Condrey
Hey, here’s a thought: What if everyone on ASO’s gargantuan board of directors, and those hundreds of donors listed in the program, all attended the classical concerts, and brought along a couple of friends? No more empty seats!
Kristen Nilsson and Steven Hoelscher
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By Greg
November 23, 2009 6:33 PM | Link to this
Jean Clare also cited the empty seats in her review in the Arts Blog. While the music might be one factor in the less-than-full house, another might be that the concert was going up against Longhorns football. I wonder how many arts patrons are also football fans. Back when the symphony was at Bass Concert Hall, they almost never went on against the Horns.