Saddest artist post of the year
NewsFrom an accomplished Italian pianist, posted this afternoon:
Dear friends, I’m sad to let you know that, due to the pandemic, all my concerts of this concert saison have been cancelled. We are living a very difficult moment for Art and Culture.
Hoping to see you soon..
Awful, just awful.
But concerts could in principle take place, with good ventilation in the hall, masked audience, vaccination proof at the door. That is how they do it currently in Hong Kong and China.
I live and work at one of the major Orchestras in China. Nobody is forced to get vaccinated and nobody checks if anyone is vaccinated, anywhere. Masks are encouraged, not mandatory, but most wear them anyway. Never the musicians on stage though. There is no misconception in China that the vaccines stop the spreading (they don’t) so I’ve never been asked to show proof of vaccination. They don’t care if you are vaccinated. Vaccinations were organised by our Orchestra and all you had to do was show up at the rehearsal hall to get the shot. If you didn’t want to, you were not asked to do it. They just check our app that shows if you’ve been in a high risk area in the last 14 days. If that’s green, you’re free to go anywhere. If not, you get tested. If you want to travel anywhere within China, you need to be tested within the last 48 hours and the test is not the nasal one (very intrusive!) most Westerners get. Just the throat swab. Much easier to take it often. Of course, all is free and very efficient, easily accessible and at this point so normalized, you’d think it was always this way. I travel a lot, I get tested the day before I leave, results are ready within 12 hours and registered on my phone, I arrive to my destination, get tested at the airport or train station (so I got the new test for going back home ready) and it takes me less than the time I need to walk outside the airport/train station and to my car.
The years 2020 & 2021 &2022 should be named THE TEST YEARS!
ANd wait till we get to 2023!!
Sure
-ventilation will mean you get pneumonia
-masks mean suffocating
-go to China and Hong KOng then with multiple doses and vaccination proofS
!!
Have fun
Not the pandemic, the response to the pandemic.
I don’t think most understand this pandemic is an extinction level event for most arts organizations.
Yes. Maybe Pfizer et al will set up a fund to support and replenish arts groups out of their windfall profits.
Not due to the pandemic. Due to the government.
Uh, am I missing something? Who is the pianist? Is she in the photo?
always difficult for the self employed.
especially musicians
‘Concerts are never real music. You have to give up the idea of hearing in them the most beautiful things in art.’ — F. Chopin
Enterprising artists need to go underground, performing in illicit private salons similar to the speakeasies of the Prohibition era. Paid for in precious metals not with worthless fiat currencies.