Vote

I realized I hadn't been in decades, and went last month; will try to do two or three more this year.

Rock and roll music floats my boat.

I used to go to five or six Tanglewood concerts every year, but have been turned off by three things. The inevitability of standing ovations these days seems fetishistic, you can sense the dismay in the wiser artists. The music on offer is getting worn out; I truly love the 9th (take your pick), but enough, already. The final straw for me are the over-strong perfumes of the blue-haired matrons on all sides. I am allergic and struggling to not cough during the quiet passages is a deal breaker. I now go to three or four chamber concerts a year. Everything about the more wieldy repertoire, and the smaller venues and audiences, feels more genuine and appropriate for where we find ourselves today.

Couldn't live without them.

Yes, I go a few times a year. I usually try to go to concerts that feature a favorite 20th Century piece (which are few and far between). I am so amazed that so many of the people leave in droves when a piece of 20th Century music is being played. When I saw the Philadelphia Orchestra playing Messiaen's Turanguilila symphony I would estimate that a third of the people headed for the exits! I don't understand that, since the music has such a variety of color and harmony.

Opera, season ticket-holder since I was 28.

I am amazed by the amount of effort put in by composers of this genre and that I seem to uncover new things each time I listen to it.

Too expensive. The price of art has become outrageous.

I have been a season ticket holder with the LA Philharmonic for over 10 years. I enjoy live clasical music and the experience at Disney Concert Hall is superb!

Was once assigned to write a certain number of music reviews as part of a junior college course. The one condition was we had "to breath the same air as the musicians." I chose the Sacramento Symphony. It was quite enjoyable. I don't go anymore and I'm really a metal head.

It's a sad, sad situation.

Yes, but not as much as when I lived in Rochester.

I'm 56, have been a Philharmonic and Opera goer for 10 years now. Nothing like 100 people on stage doing it live.

I'm lucky to be in one of the few cities in Brazil that offers a wide variety of options, with good conductors, excellent ensembles, and one of the finest rooms in the world: Sala São Paulo. I try my best to attend to at least one concert a month there, not just for the enjoyment, but to support the scene, keep my ears fresh, and to remind myself of the wonders that can only be brought about by actual instruments. Recordings are great, we all love them, but they are not (and never will be) a live event. Oh, I'm 27 and I've been doing so since I was 23.

When I ran a classical music website, I attended concerts about twice a week. It changed my way of thinking about audio. Now I go to concerts perhaps twice a month, but the profound effects remain. I wish I could afford more opera. Then again, if I had the money I'd outspend live with recorded—there is so much available.

That's one reason I live in New York. My tiny but affordable space will barely hold my modest rig, much less allow an optimum arrangement, but I can walk to Carnegie Hall and the Metropolitan Opera House—and those are some rooms.

The only real pure form of audio ear-candy. Timeless and the best sound you can get. Its also a lot cheaper than spending thousands trying to reproduce the same sound at home. Bravo!

I have been attending live classical music concerts in every city I have inhabited since I was an undergraduate at the University of Utah (Abravanel's Utah Symphony, at the Mormon Tabernacle, twice a week in season). I now have season tickets at Dudamel (sorry, I meant Disney) Hall. It is still a worthy musical experience, but not as transcendent as Salonen used to be. Memory of the live event is the only criterion I can use in evaluating home equipment. One of the advantages of being old is the vast number of memories.

Okay, well I'm 31, but I do attend as much as time permits.

Over 30, but have attended concerts since I was 10.

Yes, classical-classical, classical-jazz, and classical-anything else. Live rocks!

We're in this for the music, not the gear, right? I'll take the real thing over an impressive facsimile any day!

Nothing beats the top-level center seats at Boston's Symphony Hall for the ultimate all-analog acoustical experience. The orchestra's pretty good, too.

Yes and I'm under 30, although it's rare to find a program I'm excited to hear. Also, shame on any orchestra that uses sound reinforcement—that means I'm not hearing the orchestra and only the orchestra, which keeps me from going.

Absolutely. There is no stereo system that will ever be like the real thing. Live classical made me realize how bad cheap stereos can be. The live event and acoustics just can not be replaced.

Mostly chamber music concerts. There are many excellent concerts in the San Diego area that only ask for a $5 donation. The programming of the San Diego Symphony is rather staid, but I do get to the occasional Symphony concert.

I do go, although after a hiatus, I was surprised at how low the volume actually is compared to the way I'd been listening at home.

Yup, mostly organ recitals and choral concerts.

Sorry, but I will go see non-classical musicians live. I enjoy lyrics as much as I do music and one without the other doesn't do it for me.

I grew up playing cello in a variety of orchestras. No stereo system can replicate the amazing experience of a well-designed concert hall!