Large concerts can bring out the worst in people. This reality is counter-intuitive. You would think when humans gather together to enjoy a common interest, such as music, a sort of camaraderie would emerge. Instead you find a primal battle for personal space – especially when each ticket vaguely states “General Admission.”
I hover in the gray area between introversion and extroversion, but when I go to concerts, there is no question about it: I am an introvert. I attend concerts to enjoy live music, and I do not want to contend with any of the following:
1. Drunk people searching for conflict with other concert goers.
2. People passive aggressively shoving others who get in their way.
3. Couples dancing and swaying with such breadth they soon incorporate an unwilling third wheel into their movement.
4. People who come to socialize and not to listen.
5. People who believe “concert etiquette” does not include common courtesy.
I love live music, but I cannot pinpoint a greater frustration than when a concert’s environment detracts from the sights and sounds everyone has paid to experience.
The dynamic of concerts is unlikely to change; however, as an introverted concert goer, I have figured out how to enjoy live music without disappointment:
1. General Admission is the death of me. I need my uncontested personal space: a seat designated for me where I may relax and enjoy the sounds around me.
2. A concert-going friend who is also an introvert. Nothing is worse than wanting to just sit and listen to the music when your friend insists on clawing his or her way to the front of a sea of standing people. I enjoy concerts most when I go with like-minded company.
3. I do not go to concerts in environments I know I will not enjoy. An intimate show at Sokol Auditorium – yes. An overcrowded general admission show at Pershing Auditorium – no thanks.
There is no “right way” to enjoy a concert, and it is up to each individual to determine his or her own preferences. Nevertheless, one bottom line exists: Live music is wonderful, inspiring, and food for the soul.
Here is a fragmented list of concerts I have attended:
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (2003)
Bob Dylan (2006)
Regina Spektor (2008)
Paul Simon with The Punch Brothers (2011)
Grouplove with Icky Blossoms (2013)
The Lumineers with The Cold War Kids (2013)
Cherub (2013)
Bastille w/ Wild Cub (2013)
Interest 
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