Janos Gereben on the Mahler 9th:

>I never heard a live performance of the Ninth without audience noise
>ruining the finale.

Yup, you never know what other audience members are going to be up to, and
the typical coughing and sneezing (which I have no problem with) are just
the tip of the iceberg.

Quite a few years ago, I was trying to stay engrossed with the 2nd movement
of Schumann's piano concerto.  There was a heavy-set guy sitting next to
me; it seemed like he was taking up half my seat.  All of a sudden, I hear
him fingering the coins in his pants pocket.  Eventually, I ask him to stop
doing this.  He turns to me and says, "At least I make a good living", and
then he gets up and leaves, never to return.  I don't know what he was all
about, but his departure was the highlight of the evening.  The way I look
at it, when the highlight is the comings and goings of other audience
members, it's time to stay home, acquire the best audio equipment that can
be afforded, and enjoy the music.

Don Satz
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