Music lovers are not always necessarily concert-goers

I love listening to music.  I have over 300 audio discs which I play and listen to constantly.  It's practically a major part of my everyday life.

However---I NEVER attend any concerts.  Not even if a performer or group I admire comes to town.  To some this may sound strange.  But during my lifetime I've seen less than a dozen live venues---and, even then, only because a few of them were "freebies":  live performances at downtown festivals where there was no admission charge.

You may ask:  "Why?"  And my explanation is a little involved, but I shall offer it just as well...

By nature I'm very reclusive.  I'm not a very "social" person by nature.  I'm very quiet and introverted most of the time.  As such I don't like crowds very much.  The capricious and abrupt nature of most people sort of puts me "on edge".  I can't really be comfortable around most people and much less so in a large crowd, where one can feel "trapped" at times.  Therefore I avoid such environments unless I have no choice but to have to be in such a setting.

The way I figure it, it should be "about-the-music" anyway.  Does it really matter whether or not the performers are physically present when you hear their music---when it's primarily "about-the-sound" anyway.   Enjoyment of music is always about the aesthetical and ephemeral aspects of it anyway.

Another point I'll make about the social rite of attending live concerts:  oftentimes it's more about "idol worship" than it is about any kind of "music appreciation".  I, myself, try to avoid any manner of "partiality" toward any one particular group or performer and, instead, try to be as broad-based as possible in my musical tastes.  I enjoy a certain degree of variety as opposed to, say, inclination towards a certain style (or sub-style) of music.  And with the prices they charge for any kind of live venue fares one is forced to have to be a little biased in their choices of "who to see".

But when recording self-produced CD-Rs one can afford as much diversity of material as they want.  And that's why I prefer my "home entertainment".