The beauty of music is that it inspires a reaction in all of us. Whether that reaction is joy or sadness, or on some rare occasions, a physical reaction, perhaps even tears or you break out dancing. Everyone remembers the first time they heard that song, and now every time you listen, it brings you back to that moment.
Remember when you first heard Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here?” Or that first time you heard Lesley Odom Jr belt out “Wait for it” in Hamilton (2020). Or when you started dancing to “The Family Madrigal” from Encanto (2021). We all have those special moments with music, but for one woman who attended a concert at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, the music was a little much for her.
On Friday night, April 28, the Los Angele Philharmonic was performing Tchaikovsky’s Fifth Symphony when audience members heard a woman “screaming/moaning” from the balcony. According to the Los Angeles Times, numerous audience members and an audio recording of the Symphony making the rounds on social media confirmed that the woman was having an orgasm during the concert.
Concertgoer Molly Grant told the Los Angeles Times:
Everyone kind of turned to see what was happening. I saw the girl after it had happened, and I assume that she… had an orgasm because she was heavily breathing, and her partner was smiling and looking at her–like in an effort to not shame her. It was quite beautiful.
Composer and music producer Magnus Fiennes took to Twitter and described what he heard as a “loud and full body orgasm.” Perhaps the best reaction came from journalist Jocelyn Silver, who tweeted, “Some people know how to live.”
Went to see @LAPhil play @Thomasades and Tchaikovsky 5 last night. A woman in the audience had loud and full body orgasm during the 5th's second movement… Band politely carried on. Props to LAPhil (and Pytor Ilyich) for bringing it on….
— Magnus Fiennes (@magnusfiennes) April 29, 2023
On the website for the Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Los Angeles Philharmonic describes the second movement of Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5 as:
The luscious main theme was adapted for a popular love song. Tchaikovsky’s skillful orchestration, however, lifts the mood from sentimentality to high Romanticism. The movement’s principal melody is presented in a memorable solo by the horn, followed by other appealing woodwind solos.
The L.A. Phil certainly had no idea what it was getting into when it wrote that performance description. To their credit, despite the commotion in the audience, the band played on and continued the Symphony without distraction.
https://twitter.com/doodlyroses/status/1652570578270969856?s=20
The Walt Disney Concert Hall was built in 2003, long after Walt died in 1966. The concert hall was built when Walt Disney’s wife, Lillian, made a $50 million donation to honor Walt and his dedication to the arts. Lillian would never see the Walt Disney Concert Hall, as he died in 1997.
After that performance, a lot more people will be listening to Tchaikovsky’s 5th Symphony and paying close attention to the second movement. Enjoy.
