Earplugs, chill-out zones and chat: Orchestra eases into classical music’s relaxed new era Speedway driver on rape count
FOR the uninitiated, attending an orchestral performance can be intimidating.
There are many questions: What to wear? When to clap? What if the wrapper of a Whittaker’s bar rustles?
With this in mind, the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra (NZSO) has curated a series of performances for audiences who may feel uncomfortable in traditional concert environments.
The events, dubbed ‘‘relaxed concerts’’, will comprise ‘‘shorter, more accessible versions’’ of main performances, explains Claire Wackrow, NZSO’s artistic manager.
With no strict dress code, there is no need to hire a tux or purloin granny’s pearls. And rather than abide by a regimented seating plan, guests are encouraged to move around – dance, even. Chatter is encouraged, hosts and staff are around to offer help if required, and earplugs are on hand for those who need a break.
Guests are also more than welcome to jump ship, Wackrow continues, if they’re not feeling it. The doors will stay open and there’s a chill-out zone outside for anyone who wants to escape.
The relaxed concert sessions are one facet of the NZSO’s wider
Setting Up Camp series, which debuted last year just before lockdown.
Historically, the NZSO would bunny-hop around the country, one show per town. Setting Up Camp ensures the NZSO spends up to three days in one place, allowing a mix of evening and daytime performances, school programmes and local events.
The idea is to shift the public’s perception of the orchestra: rather than a highbrow activity for the elite, it is instead an art form for the whole community.
This year, the two concerts at the centre of the series will be Town and Country and The Soldier’s Tale.
The former traverses the first
movement of Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony and John Barry’s Oscar-winning title theme from Out of Africa, while the latter is crafted in association with Royal New Zealand Ballet, and sees musicians, dancers and actors perform Igor Stravinsky’s pocket-sized theatre piece.
Wackrow says we’re probably all more acquainted with the classical genre than we think. ‘‘Orchestral music is everywhere. It’s in your headphones when you’re playing a game, it’s the soundtrack to your action movies.’’
Concert and ticket information for Setting Up Camp 2021 can be found at
nzso.co.nz
A top New Zealand speedway driver competing in America was this week arrested, charged and held in a county jail after being accused of rape.
Max Guilford, 19, is ranked third in New Zealand in midget speedway, and is in Indiana, to compete on the USAC speedway circuit.
He was arrested in the small farming town of Hartford City last week and charged with rape, according to the Muncie Star Press, an Indiana morning newspaper. The complainant is a local woman who had been on two dates with him.
Guilford, however, still raced in the opening round of the Indiana Midget Week Series on Friday in the town of Paragon, according to his team Facebook page.
A copy of the charge sheet obtained by Sunday News shows that he posted a cash bond of US$4000 (NZ$5544).
Guilford attended Auckland Grammar and is understood to have been driving full-time since leaving school.