After Kate Bushs reasonable request to audiences not to use gadgets to record her shows - see bit.ly/1pXxRX3 - and comments I heard recently from Tairrie B - see on.fb.me/1rUJEnc - and Tiffany Jenkins excellent article in the Scotsman about distraction versus concentration - bit.ly/1qOvqYH - heres the worlds greatest band, King Crimson, doing something theyve been doing for much of their 45-year existence. To wit, telling audience members to put away their gadgets and WATCH THEM PLAY. The band has been saying this for so long (long before the current generation of combined phones and videocameras) that the theme has even made it into some of their music, such as the 80s song THE KING CRIMSON BARBERSHOP and the 00s live track LIGHTS PLEASE. The latter documents the band literally stopping the music mid-performance, to request that an audience member taking photos (having been asked not to) desists and passes their camera to the front of the stage. You may think this is extreme, but in my view making such a request of an audience is the rightful prerogative of musicians and other types of performer. A performance is not necessarily a photo op. And some performances may benefit (from the perspective of the audience as well as the performers) from NOT being photo ops. The point is made with good humour in the announcement below, in which King Crimsons current lineup explains why it would like audiences to put their gadgets away during the current tour. As Robert Fripp says: Embrace the moment. Use your ears to record, and your eyes to viddy. And if youre present, you might remember it - but if youre filming it, you will not. Carry your own personal videorecording around with you forever, for the rest of your life.
Posted on: Fri, 12 Sep 2014 19:06:13 +0000
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