I sing with a men’s chorus, and from time to time the audience starts clapping along with the music. I think I’m the only person who hates this. I find it distracting, and they tend to lapse into a different tempo, and of course they can’t hear the lyrics. And sometimes our tempo or dynamics change, and everything goes to hell. I love our audience, and I welcome their enthusiasm, but I wish they’d just enjoy us without the distraction.
Of course the audience can hear the lyrics when they’re clapping. Why would you think they can’t? I’ve been at dozens of concerts of all types and venues when the audience started clapping along and that has never once covered up the lyrics.
Hmm, this isn’t a problem I personally have. Once the band gets going, the audience would need their own P.A. to keep up, much less be heard.
Your problem is an interesting one, though. The point of the performance is generally to entertain the audience, but their enjoyment is getting in the way of the actual performance happening. Even if you wanted to stop it, how would you, other than by not being so enjoyable?
The only advice I have is: maybe if you can’t beat them, join them? Perhaps on the numbers where people clap, have the choir start clapping first, and lead it. You’ve got a bigger chance of keeping the crowd on-time (at least someone will be), and if you’re rhythmically clever you can telegraph any time changes as if you were a good drummer.
And really, the current situation is better than someone jumping on stage and pouring a beer on your head, isn’t it?
I’m reminded of this video, in which Harry Connick Jr switches the beat around at around the 0:40 mark so that the square audience’s clapping goes from the 1&3 to the 2&4 (you can see the drummer pump his fists in appreciation in the background).
I also sing in chorus and the occasional karaoke solo or duet. I hate it. I am also frequently an audience member and then I also hate it. I hate it when I’m watching a talk show on TV and the audience does it then, too. They’re always off. If they don’t start out off, they end up off and it’s so grating to me. If an audience were able to clap to the correct tempo and stay that way, I don’t think it would bother me, but it NEVER works out that way. So I get distracted by just the thought of the inevitability of it happening even when they start out OK. Just STOP IT.
