A First-Timer's Guide to the Symphony

You’ll find people of all ages in the audience—from students and young professionals to families and longtime music lovers.

Some people come for a relaxing night out, others are passionate music fans, and many are simply curious to experience live orchestral music for the first time.

At the Idaho Falls Symphony, you’ll see a mix of generations in the audience—and on stage. From Youth Orchestra musicians to seasoned performers, our concerts bring the whole community together through music.

You don’t need any background in classical music to enjoy a symphony concert.

Think of it the same way you might enjoy a movie soundtrack—you don’t need to know how the music was written to feel the excitement, beauty, or drama of the sound.

Many audience members simply come to relax, experience live music, and see talented musicians performing together. If you’re curious about the music, our program notes and conductor remarks often share interesting stories and insights, but they’re completely optional.

The most important thing is simply to listen and enjoy the experience.

The short answer is: whatever you’re comfortable in, knowing that you’ll be sitting for about forty minutes at a time. There are many schools of thought surrounding dress for the audience at orchestral concerts, but the Idaho Falls Symphony urges you to simply come as you are. Some people like to use it as an opportunity to get dressed up, while others prefer to come in jeans or whatever is comfortable - and both are perfectly fine!

The musicians will probably be dressed in what we call “concert blacks” (simply put, all black for women, and a tux or suit for men), and ushers will be in black bottoms and white tops to make them easily recognizable. Board members and staff wear name badges with the Symphony’s logo on them. Please feel free to approach them and let them know if you have any concerns or feedback, or ask them for help.

The first thing you’ll want to plan for is parking. Our concerts at the Frontier Center for the Performing Arts bring in a crowd that is often too big for the parking lot next to it, so try to arrive early to assure that you either get a good spot or have some time to walk from the street. For concerts at the Colonial Theater, you’ll be dealing with parking in downtown Idaho Falls, which can be a little challenging, too. Always plan for an extra ten minutes or so just in case! Fortunately, we don’t charge for parking and neither do our venues, BUT parking downtown can get complicated. Check here for the most up-to-date information when our concerts are held at the Colonial Theater.

When you go inside, you can either pick up your tickets at Will Call (if you’ve ordered them ahead of time and selected that delivery method), purchase tickets at the Box Office, or if you already have your tickets, you can go into the hall if the doors are open. If not, feel free to purchase concessions, which you are allowed to take into the hall with you.

Typically, we open the doors by about 6:15pm for the pre-concert talk, and you’re welcome to go in and find your seats or sit closer to the front during the pre-concert talk. The pre-concert talk is an opportunity for the music director and/or soloists to discuss the music and composers being performed on that concert, and to share anecdotes about what they do. It is also a great opportunity for you to ask questions, if you’re feeling up to it! The pre-concert lecture is over by 7:00pm, at which point you’ll need to go find your seats.

At about 7:30pm, we’ll start the concert with opening remarks, the concertmaster will tune the orchestra, and you can refer to your concert program for what happens for the rest of the night!

Applause is always welcome at a symphony concert.

Many pieces of classical music are made up of smaller sections called movements. Traditionally, audiences wait until the end of the entire piece before applauding so the music can flow from one section to the next.

If you’re ever unsure, the easiest thing to do is simply follow the lead of the audience around you—or watch the conductor. When the conductor lowers their arms and turns to the audience, that’s usually the moment for applause.

And don’t worry about getting it exactly right. Concerts used to be much more lively, with audiences cheering, clapping after solos, and reacting in the moment. Today the atmosphere is usually quieter during the music, but enthusiasm is always appreciated.

Example piece

Movement 1  |  Movement 2  |  Movement 3   
 🎵 music           🎵 music          🎵 music        👏 Applause

You can typically expect a forty-minute period of music followed by a twenty-minute intermission and then a second forty-minute period of music. There are some deviations from this, but that’s the basic math used when music directors come up with their concerts. There are pieces that don’t quite fit into this formula, and typically one half will be shortened to accommodate if necessary. Again, things can fluctuate, but here’s a basic outline of the night:

6:30-7:00pm - Pre-Concert Talk
7:30pm - Opening Remarks & Tuning
7:35pm - First half starts
8:15pm - 20-minute intermission
8:35pm - Second half starts
9:15pm - Approximate end of the concert

Cell phones are a complicated issue. Aside from the obvious disruption that an accidental ringtone can cause, the brightness from the screen even to just check what time it is can be distracting to the people around you. It really is best to just turn it off for forty minutes, though we know that not everyone can do that. At the very least, please be sure to completely silence them, and turn the brightness of your screen all the way down just in case you need to check it.

Another issue that a lot of people might not realize is that a good portion of orchestral music is under copyright. The Idaho Falls Symphony can get in a lot of legal trouble if someone takes a recording of a concert and shares it to Facebook or YouTube because the music isn’t allowed to be shared like that without orchestras paying a lot of extra fees. Sometimes we’ll perform an entire concert of “safe” works, and you may notice that our cell phone announcement isn’t quite as severe during those concerts - but a good assumption to make is to not record what you’re hearing.

All of this being said, we do love to see your photos and posts about attending our concerts, so please don’t feel like you aren’t allowed to use your phone at all while you’re attending one of our events! We would really appreciate if you took a selfie and posted it to say that you’re attending one of our concerts. We’re on most social media platforms, so try to tag us so we see it. One of our most effective ways of selling tickets is through word of mouth, especially on social media!