Symphony Orchestra

With this Digital Concert Hall, viewers have advantages over those attending in person

So here’s how the YouTube Symphony Orchestra works: musicians make videos of themselves playing a particular part in a short piece by the composer Tan Dun. They also make a more standard audition video of themselves playing their usual repertoire. They submit their videos by January 28, and the judges pick the winners. Then YouTube creates a mashup where they combine the winning parts into an “online orchestra,” and then the winners are flown to New York to do a live performance at Carnegie Hall in April under veteran conductor Michael Tilson Thomas. (Thomas is no stranger to gimmicks; when he was young, he made a recording of Rhapsody in Blue with him conducting the orchestra but with George Gershwin’s old piano rolls playing the solo part on a pianola. Which, when you think about it, isn’t that different from this YouTube “online orchestra” concept.) YouTube now occupies an important place in the world of music, since it’s the ideal place for musicians to post demos and promotional videos, as well as a place where musicians can cheaply hear and learn from the greats of the past.