Concert etiquette

Ran across an excellent speech by Alex Ross, who writes on classical music for the New Yorker. He addresses an issue I've had for a long time: where did the (quite frankly insane) norms about behavior at classical concerts come from? Why can't we applaud excellent solos? A modern orchestra performance is more reminiscent of a wake than of a music concert.

The change seems to date to shortly after the turn of the twentieth century; Ross seems to blame Wagner and his attempt to make a spiritual experience out of music performances. Read the whole thing--it's an excellent rant on a neglected topic.