It is reassuring that the Southern Sinfonia is so well supported on a Sunday afternoon but disappointing for those who came to buy door sales to the concert Baroque and Beyond in the Glenroy Auditorium, particularly as I had convinced two young budding violinists to come.
We arrived half an hour early and were told the concert was sold out but if we waited, seats might yet be available.
A couple of students also waited, as did a further two mothers with young children.
On being told that there were no seats left after all, just as the concert started, I pointed out a number of empty seats only to be told that they were sponsors' seats and could not be sold.
Apparently there were sufficient empty seats to accommodate all the latecomers, I was told afterwards.
I thought there was a drive to encourage the next generation of listeners to attend concerts.
It is hard enough to encourage young children to come along and perhaps a few rules might have been able to be broken.
Perhaps the sponsors could advise in future if they are not intending to go and the seats could be released for the benefit of all, including the coffers of the Southern Sinfonia.
Ingrid Memelink
Dunedin
• In recognition of the importance of readers' contribution to the letters page, the newspaper each week selects a Letter of the Week, with a book prize courtesy of Dunedin publisher Longacre Press.
This week's winner is Ingrid Memelink of Dunedin. She receives a copy of Kate De Goldi's The 10PM Question, Longacre Press, $29.99.
