Should LA Phil Go Casual?

When architect Frank Gehry designed the L.A. Philharmonic’s dazzling new concert hall, he promised to make it “a living room for the city,” and if the comfort level of the patrons is any indication, he succeeded. Whereas a concertgoer in anything less than a shirt and tie might have been well out of place in the Phil’s ultraformal old concert hall, the modern slopes and inviting facade of Disney Hall seem to have convinced many to shed the three-piece suits in favor of more comfortable attire. So why is the Philharmonic persisting in wearing those hopelessly over-formal tuxedos?