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Bidding farewell to The Shell
As a classical masterworks venue, it leaves everything to be desired
The Rady Shell
I was unable to attend the final concert in the 2023-2024 Jacobs Masterworks Series on Saturday, May 25. I have obligations on Saturdays until 6:00 pm and the concert started at 6:30 pm. The Padres game started at 6:40 pm. There was no way I would be able to get downtown, find a parking spot, and then head over to The Shell in time for the concert. It’s a pity because the first piece on the program was Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4. The fourth is my favorite Beethoven piano concerto primarily because of the sublime second movement.
I must admit that I am thrilled at the prospect of not going to The Shell again for any classical music concerts. I know we’re supposed to be “rah-rah” and prop up the arts but I’m going to take a moment here and criticize The Shell. As a summer pops venue, it is spectacular. As a masterworks venue, it leaves much to be desired. In fact, it leaves everything to be desired.
Amplified classical music does not and will not ever appeal to me. When I see videos of The Berlin Philharmonic’s summer concerts or those of The Vienna Philharmonic, I have no desire to attend. Neither concerts in front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. While the settings of these concerts are iconic, the musical experience, aka the one I would be there to have, lacks authenticity.
Video:
Flower Duet from Lakme
While I am a consumer of recorded classical music, I prefer recordings of live performances whenever possible. They are more authentic. Nowhere is this more the case than in concertos and opera.
For the penultimate concert of the Masterworks Series, The San Diego Symphony Orchestra performed Felix Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto and Act I of Richard Wagner’s Die Walküre. The performance of the violin concerto was beautiful but the violin was twice if not thrice as present, as compared to the orchestra, as it would have been in an unplugged setting.
As I mentioned in my previous article, the singers were mic’d in an unflattering manner for Die Walküre. The proper setting for that concert, given the current state of venues in San Diego, would have been The Civic Theatre or even better, from a musical perspective, The Balboa Theatre. However, that would have meant paying a fee to rent the theater and eschewing the prominent projections at The Shell.
Regarding projections during orchestral concerts, I’m not a fan of those either–I’m becoming quite the negative Nancy here. Changing the mood of the lighting from movement to movement is fine but artistic projections are a distraction. If an audience has cultivated itself, it doesn’t want the subjective musings of the projectionist. A cultivated audience is trying to have its own subjective experience and then discuss it with friends after the concert.
This leads to the topic of audience development. That topic is a massive tub of worms wriggling in every direction at once. We will explore audience development, or rather the lack thereof, in future articles. For now, let’s put a positive spin on this and say I’m looking forward to the re-opening of The Jacobs Music Center and the start of a glorious new chapter in the history of San Diego classical music.
Here's something you might be interested in.
Bidding farewell to The Shell
As a classical masterworks venue, it leaves everything to be desired
Bidding farewell to The Shell
As a classical masterworks venue, it leaves everything to be desired
The Rady Shell
I was unable to attend the final concert in the 2023-2024 Jacobs Masterworks Series on Saturday, May 25. I have obligations on Saturdays until 6:00 pm and the concert started at 6:30 pm. The Padres game started at 6:40 pm. There was no way I would be able to get downtown, find a parking spot, and then head over to The Shell in time for the concert. It’s a pity because the first piece on the program was Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4. The fourth is my favorite Beethoven piano concerto primarily because of the sublime second movement.
I must admit that I am thrilled at the prospect of not going to The Shell again for any classical music concerts. I know we’re supposed to be “rah-rah” and prop up the arts but I’m going to take a moment here and criticize The Shell. As a summer pops venue, it is spectacular. As a masterworks venue, it leaves much to be desired. In fact, it leaves everything to be desired.
Amplified classical music does not and will not ever appeal to me. When I see videos of The Berlin Philharmonic’s summer concerts or those of The Vienna Philharmonic, I have no desire to attend. Neither concerts in front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. While the settings of these concerts are iconic, the musical experience, aka the one I would be there to have, lacks authenticity.
Video:
Flower Duet from Lakme
While I am a consumer of recorded classical music, I prefer recordings of live performances whenever possible. They are more authentic. Nowhere is this more the case than in concertos and opera.
For the penultimate concert of the Masterworks Series, The San Diego Symphony Orchestra performed Felix Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto and Act I of Richard Wagner’s Die Walküre. The performance of the violin concerto was beautiful but the violin was twice if not thrice as present, as compared to the orchestra, as it would have been in an unplugged setting.
As I mentioned in my previous article, the singers were mic’d in an unflattering manner for Die Walküre. The proper setting for that concert, given the current state of venues in San Diego, would have been The Civic Theatre or even better, from a musical perspective, The Balboa Theatre. However, that would have meant paying a fee to rent the theater and eschewing the prominent projections at The Shell.
Regarding projections during orchestral concerts, I’m not a fan of those either–I’m becoming quite the negative Nancy here. Changing the mood of the lighting from movement to movement is fine but artistic projections are a distraction. If an audience has cultivated itself, it doesn’t want the subjective musings of the projectionist. A cultivated audience is trying to have its own subjective experience and then discuss it with friends after the concert.
This leads to the topic of audience development. That topic is a massive tub of worms wriggling in every direction at once. We will explore audience development, or rather the lack thereof, in future articles. For now, let’s put a positive spin on this and say I’m looking forward to the re-opening of The Jacobs Music Center and the start of a glorious new chapter in the history of San Diego classical music.
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