Beyond Applause: A Collaborative and Interactive Experience in Piano Concerts

Classical piano concerts traditionally position audiences as passive observers, limiting their emotional expression and participation primarily to applause after the performance. This passive stance contrasts sharply with modern interactive events, creating a gap between audience expectations and classical concert formats. This study explores how the audience can collaboratively contribute to shaping an interactive scenic environment in piano concerts without disrupting the musician’s performance. By leveraging the FeelIt application, we introduce a novel approach that enables real-time audience participation through non-intrusive digital interactions, allowing spectators to express their emotions through visual reactions without interfering with the artistic execution of the performance. The user engagement scale (UES) results highlight positive aspects of the tool’s aesthetic appeal and rewarding nature, reinforcing its potential to enhance the audience experience. This study contributes to research on interactive technologies in performing arts, offering insights into how digital tools can transform traditionally passive audience experiences into more dynamic and participatory events while maintaining artistic integrity.