Covid-19 Can't Stop The Music

The strategy of social distancing and avoiding crowds to combat the Covid-19 coronavirus is creating enormous challenges for the workforce in multiple industries. In sports and entertainment, however, it is causing total shutdowns.

Fans of basketball were gutted to see the NBA season suspended indefinitely, after Utah Jazz centre Rudy Gobert contracted the virus, and even apuestas deportivas en Mexico has been affected by the lockdown. Their disappointment was shared by ticketholders to Cirque du Soleil shows on tour around the world, the Metropolitan Opera in New York, or countless other bands and solo performers.

Kelly Clarkson, Rage Against The Machine, Nicki Minaj, Avril Lavigne, Mariah Carey, Kiss, Pearl Jam, Miley Cyrus, Green Day, Stormzy, Baby Shark Live and the Jonas Brothers are a small selection of the acts that have had to cancel or reschedule show dates as the Covid-19 threat escalates. Unable to go out and see them in person, fans are increasingly looking for an online alternative.

Live Streamed Classics Online

In Italy, ordinary people are singing opera and traditional songs with their neighbours across the quarantined streets. And rather than stand idle, classical orchestras are performing in empty concert halls to thousands of fans nevertheless, thanks to live streaming.

Bizet's Carmen by the Berlin Staatsoper, the Berlin Philharmonic playing Bartok and Berio, Beethoven live on YouTube courtesy of the Seoul Philharmonic Concert; these were just some of the offerings streamed online in the space of one week. If the epidemic continues, live-streamed classical concerts could become frequent occurrences, as musicians attempt to hang onto their audiences without being able to gather them in crowds.

No Substitute For Live Yet

While fans no doubt appreciate the efforts to keep the music playing during the crisis, live streaming is not the perfect solution for "remote-audience concerts" just yet. Several reviewers of the events mentioned have noted the eerie atmosphere of a full orchestra playing in an empty venue, to silence. If there is any clapping going on, it is in the homes of viewers, unheard, and the organic interaction between musicians and audience is lost.

The Met probably opted for the better compromise. With its New York opera house closed, the Met is streaming free operas on its website nightly. These are not live, but recorded productions that have be staged at the Met over the years. As such, they include the responses of a live audience, so viewers can feel more involved as they watch works like La Boheme, Carmen, La Traviata and Il Trovatore, among others.

VR For More Immersive Shows

Music lovers who prefer tunes written in more recent decades already have plenty of options available online; apart from YouTube videos, they can find filmed versions of different stage shows by hundreds of acts. Expect more contemporary artists to follow the classical musos' lead too, as they replace lost touring revenue with live shows online, monetised through pay-per-view platforms or streaming subscriptions.

Multiplayer online games and virtual reality headsets offer further possibilities, however - truly interactive concert experiences enjoyed live online, with no possibility of virus transfer. Classical and contemporary performers alike should be investigating platforms like Twitch, Minecraft, Stingray Qello, OculusVenues, Wave or StageIt, if they want to pandemic-proof their income streams.