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Philharmonic iPhone Disrupter Apologizes (And Hasn't Slept In Days)
By
Garth Johnston
Published Jan 13, 2012
Modified Jan 13, 2012
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By
Garth Johnston
Published Jan 13, 2012
Modified Jan 13, 2012
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Earlier this week we became huge fans of New York Philharmonic music director Alan Gilbert when he stopped a performance of Mahler's Ninth Symphony just before the end to shame an audience member whose iPhone wouldn't stop marimba-ing. And we weren't the only ones—the internet quickly filled with praise for Gilbert's agressive actions. But what of the offending iPhone owner? How's he doing? Well, now we have his side of the story. And the answer is not well!
The Times caught up with the symphony goer—who understandably chose to remain anonymous—and "Patron X" sounds very apologetic. And, as some commenters here suggested, it seems the noise wasn't actually his phone ringing—his (new) phone was on silent—but the alarm was going off:
Patron X said he had no idea he was the culprit. He said his company replaced his BlackBerry with an iPhone the day before the concert. He said he made sure to turn it off before the concert, not realizing that the alarm clock had accidentally been set and would sound even if the phone was in silent mode. “I didn’t even know phones came with alarms,” the man said.
But as Mr. Gilbert was glaring in his direction, he fiddled with the phone as others around him did, just to be sure, pressing buttons. That was when the sound stopped. It was only in the car going home that his wife checked the settings on his phone and found that the alarm had been set.
The man, who referred to himself as being devastated, described himself as a business exec between 60 and 70, who runs two companies. He told the Paper of Record, "It’s horrible, horrible. [I have] not slept in two days."
Patron X is a twenty-year Philharmonic subscriber, and he has now reportedly apologized to Gilbert personally (and had his apology accepted). Meanwhile Gilbert, who has gotten lots of press from the incident, has even found a way to look on the bright side of it, saying, "It shows how important people still feel live performance is. This is something people either consciously or implicitly recognize as sacred."
But still, people? This story remains a perfect example of why you should TURN OFF YOUR PHONES AT LIVE PERFORMANCES—not just put them on silent.
Tagged
alan gilbert
embarrassing
etiquette
iphone
lincoln center
New York Philharmonic
Garth Johnston
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