The Chicago Sinfonietta‘s Monday premiere of David N. Baker’s “Concertino for Cell Phones and Orchestra” took audience participation to new heights as cell phone owners were instructed to literally chime in with rings when directed. For a review of this unique event let’s go to the Siskel & Ebert counterparts in the Chicago Sun-Times and Chicago Tribune. In the Sun-Times, Marta Tonegutti seems neutral about the symphony, placing its motifs in the context of 20th century compositions. She appears to be neither delighted nor disappointed, so let’s call that a “thumbs sideways” vote. John von Rhein of the Tribune sits firmly in the “thumbs down” camp. The piece “turned out to be less than the sum of its silly, noisy, sometimes funny gimmicks” and he calls attention to the audience phones that rang out of turn. But audience participation is always a crowd pleaser and the volunteer cell phone musicians gave their “thumbs up” with thunderous applause at the conclusion.