Bouquets

Watching the Hallé last week, my young friend Melissa and I came up with some intriguing questions that we couldn?t think of good answers for.

What the fuck does the soloist do for the second half of the concert? Wait backstage? Go back to the hotel all alone? Dash round and watch the second half from a reserved seat? (That?s what I would do, but we couldn?t see her in the audience.)

What the fuck does the soloist do with her bouquet when she gets back to the hotel? I?ve never been in a hotel room with a vase. (Melissa?s theory was that the hotel knows who she is and will therefore provide a special vase in her room. I found this very unlikely (unless she?s in a really posh hotel). I thought she could put it in a glass and hope she didn?t need a drink of water in the night.)

When the soloist lives in Germany and is presumably flying back in the morning, what happens to the bouquet then? I wouldn?t want to carry it on a plane, even if it?s allowed, not when I?m juggling an expensive violin at the same time. (Our best theory for this is that it gets donated to a nearby hospital, but if so who organizes that?)

I?m sure there was something else but I can?t recall what. I will have to consult Melissa.

I?m told that bouquets can be a real challenge for soloists in Russia, where there is a custom of audience members giving them to the performer. So you can end up with shitloads.

In my performing days, I have given some to friends who came to the concert, and filled hosts? houses with them. I now know that you can ask hotel receptions for a vase. And if you?re going to a party or restaurant after the concert, then carrying the plants around must be quite an operation.