INTERACTIVE FORMATS OF THE 21ST-CENTURY CHORAL EVENT: TYPOLOGY AND DIRECTING AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to substantiate interactivity as a response to the transformation of listening practices in the twenty-first century and to propose a working typology of interactive formats of the choral event, positioning the conductor as a director and moderator of audience engagement. The methodology combines musicological analysis, cultural comparison, case studies, and a synthesis of contemporary performance and organizational practices; an interdisciplinary approach is employed to describe the interaction of sound, space, corporeality, media, and the participatory script. Scientific novelty lies in the systematization of five formats of the interactive choral event: the sing-along concert (collective empathic experience through shared singing), immersive spatial practices (immersive placement/movement of the choir and acoustic “envelopment” of the listener), modular improvisation (guided generation of material in real time), hybrid events (a combination of stage performance, media, and remote presence), and virtual choirs (networked co-creation and montage-based synchronization). For each type, the following requirements are identified: a clear artistic concept, a participatory script, ethical boundaries of intervention in performance, audience preparation, technological reliability, acoustic appropriateness, and sound-quality control. The study also examines the risk of substituting meaning with “effect” and proposes preventive mechanisms: the primacy of musical dramaturgy over attraction, transparent rules of interaction, calibrated interactivity, and reflective post-event communication. Success criteria are formulated as follows: the intensity and quality of audience participation, the preservation of professional performance standards, the semantic integrity of the event, the sustainability of the format (repeatability without loss of meaning), and sociocultural resonance. Conclusions: in choral art, interactivity is not an “additional effect” but an instrument for renewing communication, in which the conductor performs the functions of a curator of meanings, a facilitator of participation, and a guarantor of artistic quality.