Ahead of the pandemic, pupils in Italy’s oldest and biggest music conservatory were constantly told to proceed”closer, closer, closer” if they played together.
Even in a meter distance, it’s more difficult to play ”
The pandemic, that broke Lombardy first in Italy, and Italy first at the West, throw the 1,700 pupils asunder. For the very first months of complete lockdown, they can only follow courses online.
When they returned into in-person instrumental instruction one year past, students needed to adapt to both distancing and playing plexiglass, regardless of what the instrument — flute, violin, drums, piano. Frosini stated the security measures worked: There were only five instances of COVID-19 among pupils playing together.
“The pupils were happy because it was the only real means to generate music and function together. Psychologically, it had been quite important,” Frosini explained. But musically, it’s been challenging.
The modification was harder for its orchestras or chamber music classes, once the plexiglass dividers along with the distancing rules supposed it was hard to hear the other musicians.
“When playing you have to be together, breathe collectively,” Frosini explained.
And it was not only the physical distancing which has been challenging. It was the lack of viewers.
“We left a recording throughout the time we had been closed to the general public, and it had been quite chilly,” she explained, regardless of the high degree of implementation.
“I am a pianist and if you hear the crowd from the silence, which they’re listening to you, it provides you with a charge.
Both sold out, plus they added another display for its Beethoven performance.
“It was a significant message. The people needs to come back to listening to live audio, and the artists eventually had an audience,” Frosini explained.
The conservatory, called after Italy’s favourite opera composer, includes a fulltime symphony orchestra, in addition to a jazz orchestra; pupils also study voice and popular-rock. Graduates wind up in a number of Europe’s best orchestras, with 90 percent of alumni working fulltime in songs, be it playing, instructing, in management or libraries.