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Who, what, why: How do you stop people coughing during a classical concert? | |
(35 minutes later) | |
A world-renowned violinist has berated the parents of a child who coughed during a concert. How do you keep a tickly throat at bay, and does it matter, asks Chris Stokel-Walker. | A world-renowned violinist has berated the parents of a child who coughed during a concert. How do you keep a tickly throat at bay, and does it matter, asks Chris Stokel-Walker. |
South Korean violinist Kyung-Wha Chung has hit the headlines at her London comeback concert for suggesting that the parents of a coughing child could "maybe bring her back when she's older". | South Korean violinist Kyung-Wha Chung has hit the headlines at her London comeback concert for suggesting that the parents of a coughing child could "maybe bring her back when she's older". |
An academic paper published last year found that people cough in concerts twice as much as they do elsewhere. Jonathan Bloxham, a conductor and artistic director of the Northern Chords chamber music festival, has a theory. "We as animals do tend to mimic those around us," he says. "When one person coughs around us there can be a chain reaction." | An academic paper published last year found that people cough in concerts twice as much as they do elsewhere. Jonathan Bloxham, a conductor and artistic director of the Northern Chords chamber music festival, has a theory. "We as animals do tend to mimic those around us," he says. "When one person coughs around us there can be a chain reaction." |
His hunch may be correct. "Even if you speak about coughing, you feel like a cough," explains Professor Ron Eccles of the Common Cold Centre at Cardiff University. "There is a big psychological component to the voluntary cough." | His hunch may be correct. "Even if you speak about coughing, you feel like a cough," explains Professor Ron Eccles of the Common Cold Centre at Cardiff University. "There is a big psychological component to the voluntary cough." |
Large congregations of people - 2,500 were in attendance at Chung's performance at the Royal Festival Hall - can experience a domino effect. And it can be noisy. | Large congregations of people - 2,500 were in attendance at Chung's performance at the Royal Festival Hall - can experience a domino effect. And it can be noisy. |
The decibel level of a violin ranges from 84 to 103, which is not much louder than the average cough, measured at 70 to 90 decibels by Eccles's team in a 1998 study. Stifling your outburst may reduce noise levels, but it won't stop your neighbour from copying you. | The decibel level of a violin ranges from 84 to 103, which is not much louder than the average cough, measured at 70 to 90 decibels by Eccles's team in a 1998 study. Stifling your outburst may reduce noise levels, but it won't stop your neighbour from copying you. |
Chung's response was an overreaction, believes Bloxham. "I don't think we're fulfilling our duty to the music if we allow such a banal thing as coughing to affect our performance," he says. "The whole point of music is to transport people away from the everyday." | Chung's response was an overreaction, believes Bloxham. "I don't think we're fulfilling our duty to the music if we allow such a banal thing as coughing to affect our performance," he says. "The whole point of music is to transport people away from the everyday." |
Yet coughing is not the only way to interrupt a performance. Mobile phones left on can provide electronic accompaniments to classical instruments. In south-east Asia, a major growth area for classical music, some artists report that audiences chat among themselves or move around the concert hall. | Yet coughing is not the only way to interrupt a performance. Mobile phones left on can provide electronic accompaniments to classical instruments. In south-east Asia, a major growth area for classical music, some artists report that audiences chat among themselves or move around the concert hall. |
Bloxham is sanguine about such interruptions: "Classical music has had and still does have this rap for being a bit precious and constricting for audiences. I think that attitude is not healthy." | Bloxham is sanguine about such interruptions: "Classical music has had and still does have this rap for being a bit precious and constricting for audiences. I think that attitude is not healthy." |
Eccles has a simple solution to a mid-concert cough: "The best treatment is to suck a lozenge when in the theatre. Menthol and peppermint work particularly well at inhibiting coughs." But he has a secret: anything sweet works. Clinical trials show that 85% of a cough drop's efficacy is down to the placebo effect. | Eccles has a simple solution to a mid-concert cough: "The best treatment is to suck a lozenge when in the theatre. Menthol and peppermint work particularly well at inhibiting coughs." But he has a secret: anything sweet works. Clinical trials show that 85% of a cough drop's efficacy is down to the placebo effect. |
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra heads off the problem by offering audience members cough drops before a performance. That might be a tip the Royal Festival Hall could pick up. | |
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