They’re tapping you thrice on the shoulder, sneering and full of disdain. Look out: It’s the etiquette police! Etiquette can be the trivial stuff of lace doilies and debutante balls, but it is also laced with the potential to oppress. Shared etiquette can set us on equal footing with one another, while imposed and restrictive etiquette can lock us into hierarchies of power. It matters, then, what standards of etiquette we set. In classical music, we can agree on etiquette norms that facilitate the best musical experience for all comers. Or, stuck in stale surrender, we can wield etiquette as a way to keep the “riff raff” out of the concert hall.
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