Yannick Nézet-Séguin stops the music — again — as a cell phone strikes during a Philadelphia Orchestra concert
This time just one cell phone rang out. Maybe it’s progress?
It happened again.
Thursday night, the Philadelphia Orchestra was just a few bars into the quiet, glassine opening of Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique when a cell phone ring shattered the moment.
Once again, music director Yannick Nézet-Séguin stopped the music.
Once again, he lectured the audience.
Once again, he restarted the piece from the beginning.
This time, however, there were no “damns” or scolding looks, as there were for last Saturday night’s cell phone interruptions in Verizon Hall. Rather, the conductor seemed to accept his newfound, accidental role as Yannick, the Cell Phone Vanquisher, with good-humored resignation.
After he stopped, he turned, read the room, and said the only thing he was going to say was to ask that they now turn off phones.
“The world can wait,” he said.
He then teased the audience with a P.S., inviting them to visit the orchestra’s website for some very apt merchandise.
Cell phone disruptions have long been a problem at concerts and other performances, but word of last Saturday’s incident spread quickly and far, generating headlines and spinning off memes and other responses.
“Dear @philorch: If you’re not going to print “Can we live without the phone for just one damn hour? — @nezetseguin” on a tote bag, we will,” posted VAN, the online classical magazine.
“Challenge accepted,” responded the orchestra, which is now producing tote bags, T-shirts, and, of course, cell phone cases emblazoned with the phrase.
A recording of the incident, according to the orchestra, revealed that Nézet-Séguin’s actual quote was: “Can we just spend one hour of our lives without the damn phones, please?” but a spokesperson said that was too long, so they paraphrased it for the merchandise, which is in the process of being rolled out.
The Philadelphia Orchestra and Kimmel Center, Inc. is still considering options for how to remind patrons to turn off or silence cell phones, she said.
Thursday’s performance opened with Gabriela Lena Frank’s Walkabout: Concerto for Orchestra, and, after intermission, the usual prerecorded announcement reminding patrons to turn off their phones.
It was just moments later in the Berlioz that one rang out.
More information: shop.philorch.org.