Heckling has rarely been examined in popular music studies. The argument of this piece is that audience members heckle in an attempt to alter the balance of power in live musical performance. To understand this I introduce the idea of the ''symbolic economy,'' a framework of assumptions and interpretations held by audience members that gives stars their social value. My argument is that each musician's aura is perceived when his or her performance is both recognizably popular and emotionally meaningful to each fan. Heckling can potentially damage the aura by shifting attention away from the star, condemning the content of his or her performance, and forcing him or her to make an impromptu response.Drawing on theory from sociology and literary studies, the article supplies examples to help us understand the potentials of this process by creating a typology of different heckles. Finally, it explores the ways in which musicians have carefully managed any threats posed by cries from the audience.Does not musical fantasy consist of giving oneself a place, as a subject, in the scenario of the performance? (Barthes 152)The listening fantasy, to put this another way, is that we control the music (the sexual exchange) when in fact the performer does. (Frith 215) When they perceive things go wrong in a live performance, audience members can use a range of negative responses which include murmuring, jeering, slow clapping, spitting, booing, throwing objects, or walking out. Often an immediate response, heckling is the practice of badgering the performer with interruptions and questions. My interest in the phenomenon began in March 2004 when I attended a concert called Words and Music at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester, England, staged to celebrate twenty-five years of punk in the city. Introduced by local music scholar CP Lee, the night had a line-up consisting of Howard Devoto and Pete Shelley of the
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