“The coronavirus has transformed one of the virtues of public musical life—its ability to bring people together—into its greatest vulnerability,” writes Jeremy Eichler in Sunday’s (5/24) Boston Globe. “The latest casualty is the entire summer festival season, as events from Tanglewood to the Hollywood Bowl have now been canceled. Most experts seem to agree that the performing arts will be among the last sectors of the economy to reopen. Locally, New England Conservatory has already announced that Jordan Hall will remain closed to outside renters.… But in a rather remarkable demonstration of resilience, musicians and ensembles have not fallen silent—they have simply taken their wares online. As a result, there has never been so much livestreaming … and the streams will only multiply as the virtual incarnations of festivals like Tanglewood soon arrive online. Obviously no one would prefer it this way and there is no substitute for direct contact with live music, yet … the situation … provides an occasion to reflect on what it is we value in the traditional concert experience.… For the digitally native millennial generation, there may never be a better time to discover classical music.”
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