Center for Old Music


What should you expect at a Center for Old Music sponsored concert?

Tickets All tickets are sold at the door beginning about an hour before the concert is set to begin, though the doors to the hall may not be open until 20-30 minutes before the start. Seating is by general admission, so you should get there early to find the best seats. Ticket prices are subject to some variation depending on the concert, but will be published on this website.

Punctuality We will usually wait until people have had a chance to purchase tickets and find a seat before beginning a performance. You should arrive at least ten minutes early to make sure you have time to buy your tickets and get settled. Ushers may not let you in after the performance has begun until there is a natural break in the music.

Noise Please turn off cell phones, alarms, or any other device that may make noise during the performance. If you have a tendency to cough, you should have cough drops handy - use either drops with quiet paper wrappers or have a few already unwrapped before the performance should you need them. If you cannot control your coughing, others will appreciate your getting up and leaving the hall rather than sitting in your seat in distress. (We often have cough drops available at the door.)

Photographs Photographs are not permitted during a performance without permission. Under no circumstances should you ever take a flash photo in any kind of concert venue. Taking photos disrupts the performers' concentration and the audience's enjoyment. Most cameras make some kind of noise when you take a picture, but more importantly, the act of taking pictures is itself a disturbance.

Recording Recordings of any kinds, whether audio or video, are never permitted during a performance without prior arrangement.

Language Concerts by Musick's Company often include vocal music performed in a variety of languages. Even music performed in English may be archaic or difficult to follow. In most cases we try to provide printed translations of the texts with your program so you can more easily follow what's going on.

What to Wear There is no dress code for Center concerts. Many people like to dress casually, but neat.

When to Applaud  Early music is sometimes difficult to judge in terms of natural breaks for applause. We will often group a few similar pieces together and it is appropriate to hold your applause until the end of the group.  These groupings are usually separated by spaces in your program. If in doubt, wait until everyone else begins. Sometimes people will applaud in the middle of a group. There's no problem with that - we like applause whenever it comes.

Sacred and Secular We often mix program content with both sacred music and secular music. For us there is really no difference - it is all just great music. Some people may feel uncomfortable about applauding after a piece that is quite obviously liturgical in nature. Just remember that we are not performing a church service, but rather a musical art performance.