This is our third IRIS ORCHESTRA MUSIC MINUTE during our current COVID-19 era. I hope everyone is staying safe.
And one of the ways we will get through this is to keep music in our lives. Arts organizations everywhere have suspended live performances, but there is an abundance of great music and the arts online, and they can come safely, and for free, into your homes. Here are a few of my top favorites:
The legendary Berlin Philharmonic has offered concert streaming on subscription for years; now, it’s free. You can catch some wonderful concerts, as well as a variety of films at digitalconcerthall.com. They are all on demand, so you can check them out whenever convenient.
Like everyone else, The Metropolitan Opera in New York is dark these days — but they are offering nightly streams of full operas, all in high definition, on their website. Go to metopera.org Tonight, you can catch Verdi’s great opera, Don Carlo, at 6:30pm, Central time.
Closer to home, our friend Dan McLeary and his Tennessee Shakespeare Company has launched a series called The Decameron Project. Dan is expert at sharing stories and thoughtful musings on a different theme every day. Join the Tennessee Shakespeare Company on Facebook to hear Dan live, every weekday, at 10:15am.
Finally, every Friday afternoon (starting at noon), right here on WKNO, you can hear special archival performances from both Iris Orchestra and The Memphis Symphony; they and we will trade the time slot every week. This week, we have an Iris Orchestra program which includes Mozart’s stunning Symphony No. 40 in g minor, and I invite you all to tune in.
So… as we practice social distancing and shelter in place, let’s listen together. Never was there a better moment for great music to speak to us, to inspire us, and to comfort us. Stay safe, everyone.
Michael Stern is the music director of IRIS Orchestra of Germantown, Tennessee and the Kansas City Symphony. Tickets and more information can be found at IRIS orchestra dot o-r-g.