The Public

• With the movement came an increasing clamor for wider access to art and learning
• In the field of music, this gave rise to the public concert
• public concert

  • became available, especially to the rising middle class
  • concerts of the eighteenth century differed from the concerts we are now familiar with.
  • just as much venues for social encounters as they were for listening to music
  • one could go around and talk to other audience members during performances without being seen as rude
  • before there were only private performances sponsored by wealthy families and religious establishments