No Tuxes

[Rick Denney]

The Loudoun Symphonic Winds has gone all informal black--black shirt, trousers, and shoes; no tie.

I attended a concert of the Dallas Symphony this last weekend, and they were dressed in black (mostly) with dinner jackets and long ties. That was a Saturday night concert, so I'm assuming that's as dressy as they get these days.

I enjoy wearing a tuxedo from time to time, and I have a nice one. But I'd rather be wearing it as the attendee of a posh party rather than the hired help.

My quintet has transitioned from all black to Hawaiian shirts with brass instruments all over them, plus black trousers.

Rick "black dress shirts aren't that easy to find these days" Denney

[bloke]

Whether it's Saturday night or Sunday matinee, the Memphis Symphony performs in black suits, white dress shirts, and orchestra-supplied silver long ties. I suppose (??) they still acknowledge XY versus XX chromosomes, and women wear women stuff.
If it's a really special concert - which they might label a "gala" - they wear tails.
As the orchestra didn't purchase enough of those silver long ties to make it from the Earth to the Moon, they expect a player to hand them back to the orchestra - if the player decides to leave the orchestra.

The IRIS Orchestra was early in the rejection of tails, and - from the very beginning - the clothing was black suits with white shirts and any long tie, with the ladies wearing women's black clothing.

Recently, the North Mississippi Symphony (which is located in Tupelo (a pretty jumpin' town/city, with a good bit of manufacturing - which tends to strengthen a city's economy) set aside the "wedding" tuxedos in favor of black, which made me smile.

My personal favorite - for formal classical concerts - is the black suit, white shirt, and long tie.

I'm pretty sure that all of the big churches - in this fairly wide area - have been weaned off of asking for tuxedos, and accept black suits with long ties.

If on stage, I personally view the all black thing (with no suit coat) to be just a little bit crappy, but that's what I'll wear - if that's what is listed on the website/email/piece of paper.

[jtm]

i am just waiting for orchestras to get flashy matching jackets like brass bands. then we would be talking

I'm just happy my brass band has us in plain black instead of flashy matching jackets!

[bloke]

i am just waiting for orchestras to get flashy matching jackets like brass bands. then we would be talking

I'm just happy my brass band has us in plain black instead of flashy matching jackets!

My favorite thing from the past was those touring band leaders who bought the books and names of defunct 1930s through 1950s bands, toured the hotel circuit in the 1970s - '80s, and had smelly old blazers for the local musicians to wear - along with sight reading their books.

I actually did a "concert" - and not just a hotel engagement - in a college town's own's concert series in a large auditorium that was filled with ticket purchasing patrons, and did that concert with the person who owned the Guy Lombardo books. We all were from Memphis and sight read the concert. Afterwards, some rich guy wanted us to stop by his house for drinks and hors d'oeuvres so he could brag that he had had the Guy Lombardo band at his home. We all had to lie about where we were from and make up fake names. He had a giant draftsman drawing of a bicycle derailleur over in the corner of the room, because he wanted all of us to know that he had either designed it or had something to do with designing it.
Driving over to his house, hanging around there for an hour and a half, and then driving back to the highway back towards Memphis made us arrive back in the Memphis parking lot with our bus about two and a half hours later than we have been promised, and we demanded cash for the overtime. The band leader wasn't happy, but we were not either. It was really late.

I did a similar concert and another town - and you can just change the name of the town, the type of music, and the name of the band, and we rode up in a bus and played Scott Joplin ragtime music back when "The Sting" movie was such a huge hit. ...all the same, except we actually got back to Memphis in the bus when we were supposed to, and we actually ran through each tune one time in Memphis at a rehearsal before boarding the bus.

[Wally]

Just a reminiscence: In 1976, my first year at Northern Illinois University, the orchestra director decided to switch to blue jeans and chambray shirts. It looked like a prison orchestra! They switched back to formal black the next year.

[Kevbach33]

One setup I will not stand for personally is black on bottom, white on top, but no jacket.

When I first subbed in one of the community band I'm now in, that was the dress code. It did not turn out so well in the photographs, especially since we perform in a fairly bright church.

I think I was the only one that wore a jacket that day (jackets were optional).

[donn]

How about all white? I've seen a group show up in matching white coveralls. Well, off-white really, and it wasn't legit music at all, but it didn't look too bad.

[bloke]

White clothing shows up drippy drippy stains and leaky bladders much more so than black clothing, so I don't believe white clothing is suitable for tuba players.

[rodgeman]

Full disclosure - I have a fitted tux and have performed in it. I live in Arizona and don't like to perform in a tux or suit. I prefer all black for community band. Once I find another band close enough to play in I am going to opt out of tuxes. Too much when playing.