Online Musicking

The outbreak of COVID-19 has greatly impacted musicians and orchestras. No longer able to perform in concert halls, musicians and orchestras are trying to find ways to move their concerts online. We see musicians practicing and performing from their living rooms on our Facebook timelines. Orchestras are streaming previously recorded or live concerts.But how to perform classical music without the rituals and routines of the concert hall? How do you perform without fellow-musicians or audiences physically present? How do these videos find their way to certain audiences and what does that mean for our understanding of what a classical music audience can be? What does it mean to be a musician or an audience member in this time of home-isolation and social distancing?This website explores these questions with five musicians from philharmonie zuidnederland. Digital media afford different options and opportunities for musicians and orchestras than concert halls. Musicologist Christopher Small introduced the concept ‘musicking’ to talk about classical music as an activity that involves not only performing and listening, but also rehearsing, practicing, and evaluating. What does it take for musicians to engage in ‘online musicking’? What is online musicianship? How does online musicking change our understanding of the live concert? And how can musicians engage with online audiences? In short: How to musick online in a meaningful way