Live Concerts
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May I bring my young children to a concert?
Sharing the joy of orchestral music at a young age is a great way to foster an appreciation and interest in the arts. Children age five and older are welcome at any Mainstage concert at FirstOntario Concert Hall with a ticket purchase. As with any patrons, ushers will ask parents to take disruptive children out of the auditorium.
We regret that we cannot allow children under five years of age into Mainstage HPO concerts at FirstOntario Concert Hall. For children at this age, we recommend our Family Concert Series. Please see our Current Season to see the performances available for young children.
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When do I applaud?
There are two reasons to applaud at an HPO concert: as a greeting, and to show appreciation. You applaud to greet the Concertmaster when they come onstage (our Concertmaster Stephen Sitarski is the violinist who sits in the first chair of the first row of the Orchestra). You applaud again a few moments later when the Conductor comes onstage. Any soloists who will be performing will usually come onstage with the Conductor; you are encouraged to applaud to greet the soloist or soloists as well. You do not applaud again until the end of each piece of music, to show your appreciation to the performers.
Some longer pieces may have several sections, or movements, separated by a brief, silent pause. The audience does not applaud between movements of a piece. The program will list the movements in each piece, so you will know how many there are; applause is usually reserved for the end of the last movement. If you’re not sure that it’s over just follow the rest of the audience or wait until the conductor turns around to bow.
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When should I arrive?
If you’re picking up tickets, please arrive at least half an hour before the performance starts. Arriving at this time provides enough time to check your coat, find your seat and enjoy some of the program notes before the concert begins.
If you want more detailed information on what you’ll be hearing that night, be sure to join us for Inside the Music: Pre-Concert Talk series which begins at 6:30pm for all Mainstage performances.
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Can I bring my cellphone or camera?
Yes, but photography is only permitted in the lobby area and not inside the theatre. Video-audio recording is strictly prohibited in the theatre. Please be sure to put your phone on silent before the concert begins.
Online Concert
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I have difficulty receiving HPO emails, or I do not receive them at all. How can I be sure I receive access to my online concert purchases?
Email client security settings can sometimes prevent our emails from arriving in your inbox. Be sure to add communications@hpo.org and boxoffice@hpo.org to your email address book. You can also check to see if our emails are landing in your Junk Mail folder (or for Gmail users, the “Promotions” tab). Work or school emails often have very high security settings that may be blocking our emails.
We also strongly encourage our patrons to subscribe to our e-newsletter. Visit hpo.org/signup to join.
If you have not received an email providing access to a concert you purchased 24hrs in advance of the concert, please email communications@hpo.org.
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Can I purchase online concerts for someone else?
To purchase digital concerts for friends or family living in another household, place an order including the name and email of the family member or friend you would like associated with this concert package at checkout. You might also consider purchasing a gift card for a friend or family so that they can select their own concerts!
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Can I share my account password with people outside of my household?
We ask patrons to please not share their account password outside of their household. Broadcast links will not be made available publicly. We appreciate the cooperation of our community in understanding that all online concert broadcast tickets are not shareable between households.
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Can I re-watch a broadcast?
Yes, you can view the concert on-demand as many times as you like within 30 days of the original premiere date.