During a recent symphony concert, I was struck by the simplicity of the production. Stage lights were just turned on. The orchestra members wandered in one by one. They tuned up while the audience was seated and watching. The conductor came out. Then the music began. I realize this may be standard operating procedure for a symphony orchestra – all the players need to tune together, and a choreographed orchestra entrance may not be necessary. During the intermission, the same thing happened. The people clapped. The members of the orchestra began to rearrange the music, then one by one, got up and left for a break. After about 20 minutes, they assembled again to tune up and then started playing music.
I hadn’t been to a symphony orchestra concert in a while. And the thought occurred to me that the music was carrying it. I know that may sound obvious. But compared to many other styles of music, worship services, and other events, this was a straightforward production. Most worship services will utilize countdowns, media, lighting, entrances, timing, flow, video, and more. The church, more and more, is concerned with the look and the creative aspects of the music and the media, not that it’s bad, unless it becomes our goal.
Here, there was hardly any spoken introduction. There was no media on the screen—no video feed. And the lights were just up and on.
And it was a great evening of music—an incredible and powerful concert. The music truly carried it.
I began thinking – I wonder if we, at times, override the message with the media? If the production is good and the music is bad, is it a good concert? If the music is good and the production is simple, is it a good event? I know it has to work together. However, it was refreshing to consider the simplicity of staging and production for the orchestra. The trade-off was the fantastic complexity of getting all those people together to play the same thing. You could tell where the focus was – on making good music.
I know different styles and needs depend on the circumstances. But the evening inspired me to let the music carry it.
This is just a thought and a reminder to me to delegate more of the production and media, and focus on the music – the notes, harmonies, and the blending together of our teams!
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