Joshua Bell

Ellen and I went to see Joshua Bell perform at the Dartmouth's Hopkins Center for the Performing Arts last week. We had fantastic seats to a fantastic show. Truly remarkable. It was Ellen's first time seeing him perform, but I had actually seen him once before, back in 2005. I was in Vienna on a class trip and a few friends and I used a free evening to watch him perform Vivaldi's "Four Seasons" (which happens to be my favorite piece). Pure bliss.

Moving back to 2011, there was only one part of the entire evening that stuck in my craw: When did standing ovations become de rigueur? Joshua Bell performed three pieces plus two short encores, with an intermission following the second piece and a series of applause breaks following the third. After each one of these, with the exception of the first piece, the audience broke into a standing ovation. Don't get me wrong: It was a terrific show, and in a couple instances the standing ovation was well-deserved. But who gives a standing ovation to a two-minute second-encore? In my view, you cheapen standing ovations by doling them out automatically rather than after an especially noteworthy performance. Perhaps some of my musically inclined readers can shed some light on the matter.

This weekend is Dartmouth's 100th Anniversary Winter Carnival. Between ski races, human dog sled races, the Polar Bear Swim, snow sculpting, an assortment of marquee home sporting matchups (men's hockey versus Princeton!) and a host of other events, there's sure to be something for every Dartmouth student and alumnus. I, for one, am looking forward to it!