Streaming classical concerts: Overview on research and practice

The COVID-19 pandemic has given a boost to the audiovisual streaming of classical concerts – a cultural practice long entrenched in the analog. While opportunities and problems for the convergence of classical concert culture and the digital sphere are already discussed in research and practice, the debate about the future of this trend lacks a unified starting point. Addressing this, the present article examines classical music performance practice in digital forms by presenting a systematization of the field of practice and a comprehensive literature overview. For the systematization, different types of streaming platforms for classical concerts are categorized along dimensions of streaming. Additionally, ideal-typical digital concert formats are described based on examples ( user-generated concert , conventional digital concert , concert film , concert show ). The literature section summarizes previous publications, from the perspective of both production and reception of audiovisual concert streaming. Subsequently, research foci are identified. With suggestions for future research and outlooks into future scenarios for digital concerts, the scientific and practical analyses are synthesized. Mapping the emerging field of audiovisual digital concerts, this article serves as a starting point and a framework for further debates on digital classical concerts and other forms of digital performance practice.