And the case of Oz in Salford is only an extreme example of what happens routinely in the big shows in London, in which the musical accompaniment is reduced to a handful of musicians, the rest playing on tape (if they ever play at all often the orchestral accompaniments are made from pre-recorded sample libraries). The judge based his decision on whether he thought that Mr Bradbury's individual expectations were met … We are grateful for the judge's acknowledgment that he was not offering opinion on the sector as a whole, but that he was calling the decision based on Mr Bradbury's personal response following his visit to this show.' Which means you can expect more pre-recorded instrumental parts in musicals that tour to the Lowry.Īlas, the judge's decision probably won't set a precedent for live musicians being a necessity for any show advertised as a 'musical'. The Lowry, for their part, aren't taking the judge's decision lying down: 'Whilst we respect the judge's decision we are disappointed with the outcome. Karaoke must stay where it belongs – away from the professional stage.' I'm not so sure about the last bit of Adrian's statement: where would stadium pop gigs or Britain's reality TV stars be without a bit of professionalised karaoke?

A pre-recorded track cannot react musically to live singing or dancing, so has no place in a musical theatre.

Here's what Adrian says about his day in court: 'I am over the moon that a court of law has recognised the importance of live interaction in a musical performance. In an astonishing victory for common sense, the judge agreed with Sir Harrison and Adrian, ordering the Lowry to refund the cost of Adrian's tickets, and his legal costs.

As Charlotte said, Harrison Birtwistle was called as an expert witness in the case, saying in his testimony that 'without the orchestra or MD, a performance of The Wizard of Oz is best described as karaoke', rather than as the 'most magical family musical of them all', in Pele Productions' words. Charlotte Higgins reported last month that cellist Adrian Bradbury was suing the Lowry in Salford because having paid to take his family to see Pele Productions' version of The Wizard of Oz, there were no live musicians, and the whole thing was performed to a backing track.

Wizard Of Oz Backing Tracks