Floppy Bunny Ears

As a composer, I often find myself sitting in concert halls with audiences of a dozen people or less. The audience size does not necessarily reflect the quality of the performance or accessibility of the music. Rather I feel it has to do with the perceived image of post-classical music as irrelevant.

Rather than bemoan the lack of attendance, how about if being one of the intrepid few in the audience became a bragging right? Concerts could be framed as an escape from the everyday where refreshing audio adventures crack open the surface of sound to delve deep into a listener's consciousness. Consider the repertoire of a new music concert as Twilight Zone episode after Twilight Zone episode. Programs that encourage surprise and investigation are audience favorites.

Help already-existing audience leaders attract their friends to these terrifying unknown performances of:

• shouting contests in made-up languages
  
• fluorescent lights scraping on electric guitars
  
• double string quartets playing slowly shifting drones
  
• and floppy bunny ears
  

Now, doesn't that sound fun?