The Well-Tempered Ear

Classical music: Is clapping between movements appropriate or inappropriate? Do performers like it or not?

By Jacob Stockinger

Some classical music fans complain about there being too much applause and too many standing ovations these days.

And some of those fans are also really embarrassed by audience members who interrupt a performance to applaud.

Yet twice in the past week or so, The Ear heard musicians give the nod to the audience applauding or clapping between movements or pieces in a set.

One was the internationally renowned arranger and conductor of the All-Festival Concert that concluded the Madison Early Music Festival. The other was a member of the Willy Street Chamber Players.

Both musicians basically said that there is nothing to be embarrassed about.

Applauding between movements, it turns out, was a frequent event in history. Disapproval nowadays can seem a kind of misplaced snooty or elitist purism.

And both performers said that the musicians love hearing applause between movements. It’s a form of reward for the hard work they do and the beauty they create or express.

True, some works seem to lend themselves to such interruptions better than others do. Applauding between the movements of a symphony, concerto or opera seems less intrusive than doing so between sections of a requiem or a song cycle.

But here is a good story on the famed radio station WQXR-FM in New York City about applauding between movements. Read it and see what you think:

http://www.wqxr.org/story/why-dont-we-clap-between-movements-classical-concerts

What do you think of applause between movements or pieces?

Do you clap between movements?

If you don’t, will historical evidence and approval from the musicians themselves change your mind and behavior?

The Ear wants to hear.