Classical Music Live Streams During Lockdown
There are musicians all over the world who, when not baking bread or getting better acquainted with Netflix, are filming themselves performing. Here are a few places you can catch some live culture from home while supporting artists in doing what they do best. Most streams and videos are free but almost all ensembles are asking for donations to support them in getting back on their feet after lockdown. If you can’t decide what to watch, you can use our Concert Roulette, which gives you a classical lucky dip. Other than watching live streamed concerts, there are loads of other ways of getting your classical lockdown entertainment: here are 13 ideas from us. For further updates from us, follow @alterclassical on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook, or sign up for our mailing list.
Wednesdays and Fridays, 6pm
Website, Facebook
20- and 30-something musicians including pianist George Fu, composer Freya Waley-Cohen (who runs contemporary classical concert series Listenpony) and her violinist sister Tamsin are live streaming solo and duo performances from their living rooms. You’ll find lots of contemporary and experimental music and even a few world premieres.
Wednesdays, 4pm
Website, YouTube
The London-based Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, who you may know from their Night Shift pub gigs (ah, pubs! We look forward to seeing you again one day), usually run a programme in care homes, hospices and day care centres. They’re now presenting a weekly online version, which is around 30 minutes long and includes tours of musicians’ homes, games and sing-along participation.
Tuesday and Thursday mornings, 11.30am
Facebook
The City of London Sinfonia musicians are live streaming short concerts from their homes and gardens on Facebook. Recently they also did a 20-minute mindfulness session with meditation and violin music. We all need a bit of that at the moment!
Facebook, Instagram and YouTube
Manchester Collective, whose live performances we often recommend in our events guide, hosts an ever-changing series of live online events, including pre-recorded concerts and live Q&As with composers.
Sundays and Thursdays, afternoon/evening
YouTube
Here’s one we made earlier. Two days a week the London Symphony Orchestra (usually based in the Barbican Centre) streams a full-length concert from their archive and you can find digital programme notes to accompany each concert on their website.
Fridays, 6pm
Zoom
A morale-boosting Friday night show streamed through Zoom by harpist Olivia Jageurs. Buy a virtual ticket by sending a small donation on PayPal (from £2.50). Pick a classical banger, pop song or movie theme to hear your request live.
The Royal Albert Hall brings sessions from artists’ homes to yours while they’re closed. Some classical concerts (for both adults and kids) alongside pop, rock, indie as well as art draw-alongs. If you add your email address on the site, they’ll send you a reminder before the performance starts.
Sundays, 3pm
YouTube
The Academy of Ancient Music is playing a full-length pre-recorded concert from their YouTube channel every week during the lockdown. Lots of 17th and early 18th-century music including Handel’s Messiah (home to The Hallelujah Chorus).
Hannah Fiddy is a creative entrepreneur, developing new audiences for classical music. She has created and promoted numerous concerts outside of traditional spaces, including warehouses, pubs, clubs, museums, hospitals, prisons and even in Primark. Hannah is also an interviewer, writer and guest lecturer, and runs the Avon Chamber Choir in Bristol. In a past life she founded London Flashmob, producing quirky events from wedding proposals to cultural pranks for up to 1,000 people.
Follow Hannah on Twitter @Hannah_Fiddy.