But these days, with few exceptions, a certain lethargy has settled over the music scene. Performances are, for the most part, poorly attended. It's take a pretty stellar performance to bring out a crowd. When I arrived, the box office lights were blazing but the opera theater was closed. The concert has been canceled.
People give lots of reasons why the concert halls are empty.
They say, maybe, it's not proper to participate in such pleasure when so many people are suffering from the war and there are so many refugees. Some complain that the repertoire is too limited and they've already seen every work-many times. And the list goes on. Azerbaijanis and music seem to be inextricably tied. Some four-year old boys leaped from their seats and began an impromptu folk dance on the steps just below the stage.