Classical goes carbon-friendly with Concerts of the Earth
Concerts of the Earth is a new initiative from Choir of the Earth, streaming a series of concerts from renowned musicians to people in their homes around the world
Choir of the Earth is thrilled to announce an exciting and environmentally-friendly new endeavour - Concerts of the Earth - bringing live and interactive concerts from sensational professional artists to a global at-home audience.
When The Self-Isolation Choir’s Founder, Mark Strachan, announced its future-focused rebrand as Choir of the Earth in July 2021, he vowed to look to the environment for inspiration. The launch of Concerts of the Earth - a brand new series of livestreamed, online-only concerts - is another demonstration of this commitment.
Imagine a live concert in a medium-sized venue in an average city in England. 400 audience members are travelling from home, work, or a restaurant for an evening of music and entertainment. A handful walk to the venue, some take public transport, and many drive the average distance of 6.9 miles (as per the 2021 National Travel Survey) - let's say 100 average-sized petrol cars in all. The carbon footprint of those 100 cars driving only 6.9 miles each amounts to approximately 194kg of carbon dioxide equivalent greenhouse gasses. To neutralise 194kg of CO2 in one day requires the absorption capacity of a whopping 3,374 trees… and all for one concert. Imagine how many just like it are taking place every day across the planet.
The Climate Emergency is real, and time is running out. Change is needed now, and the music community must play its part. Concerts of the Earth, working alongside our sister organisation, Choir of the Earth, is committed to aggressively pursuing a carbon-friendly agenda, using innovative technology to minimise the carbon footprint of live music.
We also appreciate that travelling to concerts in person is not always possible for everyone, be it due to geography, expense, childcare, disability, or a host of other barriers. However, we believe it is important to give audiences worldwide the opportunity to experience the wonderful talents of the artists we have had the privilege to work with, and furthermore that we must support these performers at this challenging time by sharing their talents on a world stage.
The Coronavirus lockdowns, whilst tragic and incredibly damaging to the music industry, brought with it the realisation that it is possible to connect and share fulfilling, immersive and moving experiences without ever leaving your home. Concerts of the Earth will therefore broadcast these exciting performances via high quality livestreaming technology to ensure that wherever you live, and whatever is going on in your life, you have the chance to watch, hear and even interact with these amazing musicians at a convenient time and cost, and all with minimal impact on our precious environment.
We have learned in recent times how important social interaction can be, especially to those who are isolated. Interactivity is something we are therefore proud to champion by running a live text chat throughout the performance so attendees who wish to do so can interact during the event. Of course, those who would rather focus fully on the performance can close the chat and savour an intimate concert in the comfort of their own home.
After the concert, the audience will have the opportunity to take part in a lively on-screen discussion with the performer, who will answer questions, both pre-submitted and from the live chat. How many concerts can you attend in your slippers and then share a post-concert drink with the singer, safe in the knowledge that you are saving the world?
Tickets cost £10 each, available to purchase on the Concerts of the Earth website, and participants will receive the private link to the livestream via email. The performers will be singing live solely for the online audience - there will be no physical audience present. The concert recording will remain available to watch again whenever and as often as desired.
The initial online recitals will feature Bass-Baritone Ashley Riches in October and Mezzo-Soprano Helen Charlston in November, with further concerts to be announced shortly. Details of these concerts are as follows:
Ashley Riches
Tuesday 19 October at 19:00 BST
Join acclaimed Bass-Baritone Ashley Riches as he livestreams an intimate concert accompanied by our resident pianist, Richard Gowers, followed by a 30-minute interactive Q&A with the online audience.
The varied and entertaining programme includes a selection of pieces spanning centuries and styles, from baroque to opera, from Handel, Bizet, Gilbert and Sullivan, Schubert, Schumann, Fauré, Ropartz and Saint Saens, plus Old American Songs by Aaron Copland, and several movements from Mendelssohn’s epic Elijah, for which Ashley sang the title role in The Self-Isolation Choir’s ‘Elijah World Tour’ earlier this year.
A full programme is available on the Concerts of the Earth website at: https://www.concertsoftheearth.com/#ashley-riches
Helen Charlston
Wednesday 17 November, 19:00 GMT
Award-winning Mezzo-Soprano Helen Charlston will perform a livestreamed concert for us, accompanied by our resident pianist, Richard Gowers, followed by a 30-minute interactive Q&A with the online audience.
This thrilling programme will include stunning pieces by Handel, Britten, Brahms, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Tchaikovsky, Mozart and Saint-Saëns, as well as special performances of Dido's Lament (When I am Laid) by Purcell, for which she recently filmed a music video inspired by Coldplay with Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, plus Alexander L’Estrange’s beautiful arrangement of Michel Legrand’s How Do You Keep The Music Playing?, which Helen recently recorded with Choir of the Earth.
A full programme is available at: https://www.concertsoftheearth.com/#helen-charlston
ENDS
Notes to editors:
Concerts of the Earth is part of the Choir of the Earth family. Choir of the Earth began life as The Self-Isolation Choir, which was founded in March 2020 as a response to the Coronavirus pandemic, and has since attracted over 10,000 international singers to more than 60 choral projects.
Further information about the Concerts of the Earth concept and these innovative concerts can be found on the Concerts of the Earth website at: http://www.concertsoftheearth.com. Further information about Choir of the Earth is available at https://www.choiroftheearth.com
Further information about Ashley Riches can be found at: https://www.ashleyriches.co.uk. Further information about Helen Charlston can be found at: https://www.helencharlston.com.
All queries should be directed to concerts@concertsoftheearth.com