I knock on wood, I have never had real problems with my neighbors due to the inconvenience caused by piano playing. But, it is true that hearing a pianist practicing several hours a day is enough to drive you mad, music lover or not. I got wind of issues related to the noise caused by our instrument (even though brass are worse off). Most often, it ended in badly…

However, judges can be understanding. Indeed, in a judgment released from the District Court of Paris on 3rd December 1992, the fact that the sound level of the instrument doesn’t exceed those of laughs was enough for judges to speak out against a nuisance neighbor, estimating that life in community presupposes a greater tolerance to certain noises, which are unavoidable.

So, what solutions can we find?

Unfortunately, few solutions exist. Soundproofing a flat is an investment far too expensive. Acoustic booths as well. The use of an insulator under the feet, covers on the piano or I don’t know what… Frankly, is it really effective when having problem with neighbors? I’m not sure.

It would seem that the best solution, at least for amateurs, is the silent system. Originally installed or mounted after and relatively not much expensive, it is indisputably the best value for money. However, beware of results, all the sound possibilities offered by a piano are not necessarily found in it.

More and more professionals opt for a much more expensive solution: the purchase or rent of premises less exposed than a flat, to convert into an artist’s studio. The idea is not bad and allows to take full advantage of the piano.

The moral is: it’s tough, the life of a pianist… mostly for neighbors! And you, what solutions did you find to this problem?

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Today let’s speak about what occurs in the public during a concert. If certain halls are extraordinary quiet, others are absolutely not. The main problem of a concert hall: it is built to diffuse the sound, ALL sounds, including noises too.

Among sound pollution of our concert halls, you can of course find the same type of noises as in the everyday life. The noisiest pollution is undoubtedly the cellular phone. It appears all the same unthinkable to me that the owners of these small diabolic machines can let them on during a representation. We saw flowering, a long time ago, (it is now a part of the ritual) the announcements at the beginning of each concert. I can understand that certain jobs require to be reachable 24H a day but there is also the vibrate mode, much more silent. Finally some artists stopped concerts and left stage after hearing a ringing cellular, so now people are paying attention to this and this plague almost disappeared.

Another noise very common: the coughing fit. If it is less controllable than the telephone, you can at least limit its effects. A website advises “to try to control your cough or your sneezes. If someone is prone to cough, to take cough syrup before going to the concert can help to solve the problem. A good way to reduce the noise of a sneeze consists in putting the mouth in the elbow; you can also try to wait till the sound volume is particularly loud”. Without working up to swallow a complete pharmacy before going to a concert, certain English halls lavish illustrated advices in their programs: to cough in a pocket-handkerchief. Sometimes even the handkerchiefs are distributed at the entry of the hall. Indeed, to cough in a handkerchief makes it possible to reduce considerably the sound impact of cough. Yet, certain diabolic music lovers keep on coughing as if they were at home, which led Pierre-Laurent Aimard to stop a concert at the Théâtre des Champs Elysées and to address to public in those words: “Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to remind you that a concert hall is made to play music and not to cough”. Perhaps soon an announcement similar to those used for phone, and a film entitled “how to cough in a handkerchief?” will help us to solve the problem?

Another type of spectators poison the halls: candy eaters. Coughing drops eaters? It is the same for me, they had to anticipate! Who hasn’t been confronted to these cruel beings who unfold their candy papers cautiously? Let’s say it once for all: unfold quickly or, it’s even better: do not eat candies! And afterwards, what to do with the paper? To fold up and put it into your bag? You want to make noise again? Throw it rather on the ground and wait for the interval! If you must absolutely take coughing drops, unpack them before the concert and put them in a box or a handkerchief, for godsake! I won’t speak about zips, velcros, and so on… it’s all the same: do it quickly.

There are plenty of pollutions to quote like the applause at an inappropriate time, crackings of broken armchairs… the list is long! Very often, people attribute to younger these misdeeds, whereas from the stage or room, I noticed that it is seldom them who are involved. I was often very surprised of the extreme attention of young people contrary to other spectators known as “adult” obviously accustomed concert, but not respecting anyone. Of course, I also saw parents sitting their children stirring up and noisy at the first rank, but I would rather show to finger in this case the parents. Could we think that the parents paying the most expensive seats, acquire at the same time the right to sit there their children without any shame for the inconvenience?

In a concert hall, there is in my opinion for the spectator only one rule: attention. Silence is a corollary of attention as well as a mark of respect towards the other spectators and the musicians, and is necessary to a concert. Only one rule, then let us respect it!

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