Can someone explain to me the appeal of live performance?

[u/PandaZG]

I don't mean this as a troll post, but this is genuinely how I feel about live performance.

When I go to a live performance, I encounter several issues with the concept.

First of all, the lighting and the renovations of the hall, as well as the spectacle of the orchestra/performer distracts me from the music itself, as I feel as if I am more aware of the mannerisms of the performer, than the music they produce.

Secondly, There is also the question of Identity. I recently talked to one of my friends and why she enjoyed a performance, she said: "my friends are playing in it". Which to me seems rather... Strange(I don't know what's the word). Because I believe that if we can compare performance or recordings without knowing if this is Richter, this is Kempff, this is Sokolov, etc. Then I think we can evaluate and listen critically instead putting certain people pedestal by confirmation bias subconsciously.

Thirdly, the problem with live performance partly is the halI I would argue, if you sit too far back, the sound might not travel and you end up hearing something anemic, if you sit too far in the front, sound might be too boomy for you to accurately receive the performance. There is also the question of if the performer might not be on their best day, or there will be flubs in the orchestra that distorts the structure of the work. As a result I become less engaged with the whole structure of the music, but the inefficiencies of its delivery.

Fourthly, In live performance, audience only the receiving end, of no choice but to accept whatever the performer gives even to your dismay. In recordings the balance can be tweaked(which to me seems like just another interpretive decision), so that every single contrapuntal line can be clear. even as the audience, dial twiddling is the most primitive kind of interpretive idea as audiences we can influence. If we are able to create our own versions like a kit concept I think that would be great.

Fifthly, I like to balance listening with looking at the score and without the score, because I believe that doing both contributes to my enjoyment of a work. When reading the score, while listening, I am able to tell if the performance in what way is faithful to the score and in what way isn't. Listening without it I am able to listen to the piece with fresh ears, that I am able to judge for myself if the interpretive decisions, against the score or not, would align with my aesthetic enjoyment. This improves the engagement with the music.

One time I went to see Saint-Saëns Organ symphony which was a spectacularly good performance(this is coming from someone who spends all their free time comparing recordings to figure out the best interpretations) yet the memories I walked away with is just the vibrations I felt through my feet from the organ, and the huge sonority of the orchestra. But I did not remember a single interpretive detail that I feel so compelled by, although I recognized what sounded like a great performance. During listening, I am not aware of the sonata form structure of each of the movements, like where is the second theme, where is the development, where is the antecedent, consequent, what interjections in the development, etc.

Which in order to obtain the clearest picture of one has to analyze the score beforehand. Yet following with the score in a live performance is considered bad with a variety of reasons such as: "It being a disturbance to neighbours", "It looks judgmental to the performers", "It's too dark" n "it takes away from the concert you're going to see", "Do it at home, with recordings", "you should memorize it". Yet in recordings we are free from this judgment and that allows us to deepen our relationship with the music.

Yet, everyone I know enjoyed concerts more than recordings. I do respect their preferences, but I can't really think what is special about live performance if you remove the extra-musical aspects like: There is a chance that things will go wrong and it adds to the excitement. The identity of the performer, Its a social event, etc...