No curator or editing effort should be sensed

Sligting, the musical artistic director of Paradiso, elaborates further on this approach. Paradiso does not just want to be a hall one can use, it wants to create real events. And for that to happen the organization of Paradiso has to disappear as much as possible and this requires a rather great effort. Nothing should interfere with the direct experience of the artist and of the audience in the immediate experience. No curator or editing effort should be sensed. Also, the now famous history is of no issue, it is not displayed nor used in the building or in publicity materials, even though people are aware of it. People from Paradiso wear no uniforms, there is no Paradiso merchandise. As Candy Dulfer, the Dutch saxophonist, said to Sligting "If you play here, it feels so much like your hall". As an organization Paradiso does not interfere with what happens once something starts happening (apart from guaranteeing a safe and hospital environment). As a consequence people who perform or create events in Paradiso are allowed to make mistakes, which is quite rare these days. And later what happens is evaluated and analysed. The frame of reference for Paradiso to decide to undertake certain programmes, and how these are to be evaluated and analysed, is seldom discussed or articulated formally. The shared intuition of the programming staff and their networks determine what is done and how it is evaluated. Social relevance, artistic quality according to a variety of definitions, diversity of audiences, authenticity and a sense of urgency that evolves from what is happening 'on the streets' are structurally monitored. Paradiso is not so much concerned with originality or reputation, it is concerned with having the 'right' audience for the 'right' show. When a certain programme is truly relevant for a certain audience it makes sense to programme it. Music is understood in connection with the social and economic culture it comes from and in that sense Paradiso is aware of the avant-garde and the dynamics that define it. Sligting emphasizes that this approach is do-able because the scale of Paradiso can facilitate it. The dynamics of audiences of 100 people or 10.000 people are very different.

CN