Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1963-05-05


How do you get an audience
to clap longer and louder?
Simple-here are q few
tricks of the trade:
During the last 30 seconds
Of a performance, make sure
that the music is very loud;
If a singer is involved,
make sure that she ends on a
high note-note the Suther-
land technique.
If a pianist is giving a re-
cital. make sure that he
throws his arms high in the
air after the final chord;
If a conductor wants to
wiring applause from the au-
dience, let him remain frozen
in his final position-and
then visibly relax;
If a small ensemble (such
as a string QUARTET wants to
get additional curtain calls,
its members should smile
broadly after the first, re-
turning for later ones just a
little more quickly than the
applause calls for-keeping
the smile;
Reused to Frenzy
The trick also works for
solo recitalists who are not
very well known.
However, the best-known
stars use the opposite ap-
proach, staggering to the
wings as if totally exhausted
and only appearing for a bow
long after they should.
Audiences have been reused
to absolute frenzy by long
delayed encores.
Why don't people express
their vehement disapproval
as we'll as their approval Of a
performan They do,
where music is considered
important.
Kissing is common in Latin
countries; here, it is consid-
cred impolite.
One of the oldest ways Of
telling musicians that their
efforts are not appreciated is
the throwing Of oranges,
quite a common custom in
the 18th century, and one
that still hangs on.
For instance, at the first
performance Of one Of his
operas, Pergolesi was hit
squarely in the face by an
overripe fruit, and in 1704.
a famous singer in London,
one Nine. lofts, sent her
servant to the theater with
instructions to lombard her
rival with oranges.
The late Percy Scholes
tells Of a letter from a rela-
tive, writing not too many
years ago, who remarked
that she had seen at a
Spanish music hall a girl
going around with a basket
of rotten oranges. which she
sold expressly for the au-
dience to throw at perform
ers when the latter did
badly"
Not for Hayes
Somehow I doubt that
Patrick Hayes or the Ma
tional Symphony would make
much money from the sale Of
rotten oranges at Constitu-
ton Hall we're they to try it.
Eighteenth century Rome
was operatically very sophis-
ticated indeed. If a new
piece turned out to lack
originality "a not unusual
circumstance, the poor COM
poser would be greeted at the
premiere with wildly enthu-
siastic shouts Of Bravo,
Mozart" or bravo" any,
body else, depending upon
who was initiated.
I'm afraid goth century
American audiences have a
long road TO travel before
they will be able to under
take this kind OF virtuoso
diSapproval, however, II the
Sutherland show be a valid
measure.
NEWS FROM HERE-It is
National Music Week. as a
look at the weeks listing OF
programs on this page makes
clear. A Festival OF Music
runs nightly at $50 begin
ming tomorrow In the West
Auditorium Of the State De-
partment under sponsorship
OF the State-USIA Recrea-
ton Association. Area groups
provide the music, and for
the Montgomery County Ora
tOriO Society program. the
Honorable Lucius Battle, AS
sistant Secretary OF State for
Cultural Affairs, will read
poems by Robert Frost as part
OF the proceedings in Randall
T'hompson's interesting
"Frostiana - Seven Country
Songs" That will be Tues
day night. Secretary OF the
Interior Udall read when the
society last performed the
work.
Not only is II National
Music Week, II seems to be
National Mental Health Week
also. an event observed today
at ST. Elizabeths Hospital
with an unusual concert. An
orchestra OF go patients,
members Of the Gault String
! Ensemble. and members OF
Local l6i. A. F. OF M. will