by Daniel Hathaway
Pianist Conrad Tao tweeted earlier this month that thanks to the exigencies of the pandemic, he would refer to two pre-recorded video performances he was preparing not as concerts, but as “shows” in the sense of television. “We’re production companies now,” he wrote.
After considering all its options, Cleveland’s period ensemble Les Délices decided to fully embrace the idea of creating pre-recorded “shows” in the place of live, in-person performances this season. [Read more…]
by Jarrett Hoffman
Early on in the pandemic, Baroque oboist and Les Délices artistic director Debra Nagy decided to avoid spending time on social media. It wasn’t just the clickbait articles, or the echo chamber of opinions, or the anxiety that it can provoke in even the best of times.
It was also, as she told me in April, the “sea” of invites to live concerts streamed from living rooms. It was overwhelming. One thing she found nourishing was programming potential concerts, planning for a future where artists could once again “collaborate in meaningful ways.”
Looking back now, it’s clear that Nagy was always going to find her own unique way to approach music-making in the time of COVID. Enter SalonEra, a free series that begins August 24 and represents one half of Les Délices’ 2020-21 season.