Not only is this a hooky idea, it's a classy hooky idea. As a way to celebrate its 166th opening day, the New York Philharmonic is opening its morning dress rehearsal up to the public for free. Here are the details:
9:45AM: FREE Dress Rehearsal. Conducted by Lorin Maazel, with cello virtuoso Yo-Yo Ma; free tickets (along with discount coupons for future Philharmonic performances) will be distributed beginning at 8:00AM as the New York Philharmonic Principal Brass Quintet serenades you.Ooh. The website says the free dress rehearsal is a gift from the orchestra and its global sponsor Credit Suisse. The concert is an all-Dvorak program, and tomorrow night is the gala benefit, complete with black-tie event before the concert. For people who don't have tickets, you can still head to Lincoln Center and enjoy the concert, because at 7:30PM, the concert will be projected onto a screen on the plaza (Plaza-cast) for free, with chairs first-come, first-serve.
There's a wonderful video on the NYP site about the Dvorak concert. The NY Philharmonic performs at Avery Fisher Hall; directions here.




I look forward to the press release announcing that good tickets to a regular NYPhil concert will be available for less that $50. You can do a stunt or two like this every year but that won't change the fact that you've priced out normal people.
(Right now, I pick a random weekday concert and see that I can sit in the back for $64. And I'm sure I'd look down on lots of empty seats from there and feel ripped off.)
The NYP is still a crappy sounding orchestra with way too many asians in it's ranks now. I go to concerts only when the Cleveland or Philadelphia are in town...
dvorak cello for the win
You know where the NY classical scene headed when you have a 3rd rate 40 yo Asian conductor who's about to become it's new "musical director" in 2009. Will we see a repeat of Ozawa in Boston...?
Why the derogatory tone against Asians?
who knew that appreciating the fine arts and symphonic music carried with it an 1880's level attitude towards asians.
Yeah, watch out. Jennie Koh will come kick your ass.