The last two Early Music Hawaii concerts have been virtual, meaning that a video was created of the performance and then posted at a specified time. As an audience member you received an email message with the link to open the file.

Obviously someone was behind the scenes, creating the email link in it, and posting the link to the website. I will give you three guesses as to who that person was!

It was easy enough to create the ConstantContact email with the link in it, and schedule for it to be sent at a later date. But until this very moment, I was unaware that I could have also scheduled a WordPress post update for a certain date and time in the future (in order to update the website). So I updated the website in the really old-fashioned way: I sat next to the computer until precisely my clock reached 6:59:50 pm and then with my finger on the “Update” button, I pressed it, posting the link to the world. Voilà!

A few weeks ago I was in California when the Early Music Hawaii “Sacred Music of the English Reformation” video was supposed to be posted, so I sat next to my sister’s computer with my finger on the button, ready to press “Update” at precisely 9:59:50 pm (since at that time Hawaii was three hours behind California).

Let me tell you why this way of viewing concerts may have become our “new normal,” and the advantages of this type of virtual performance, and why I loved watching “Bewitched,” the latest Early Music Hawaii virtual concert.

1. I didn’t have to get dressed to go out, get in my car, drive to the venue, and then try to find parking, although I usually try to go to concerts early enough so that parking is not an issue.
2. There was no need to squint to read the program notes or follow along translations in a darkened room, as the program notes were verbally explained by the performers and the translations were shown as subtitles on the screen.
3. No one’s head was in the way, and you didn’t need to cringe if you heard someone cough or unwrap noisy cellophane wrappers. You have the very best seat in the house!
4. There was no need to worry about clapping in the wrong place.
5. The camera zoomed up close and personal so you could see the performer’s fingers on the strings. You could even see part of the musical score on the music rack. There were overhead shots of the harpsichordist, and you could see the view from above, something you’d never see if you were sitting in a concert hall.
6. We saved the environment by not having these wonderful performers need to get on an airplane to Hawaii, in addition to keeping us all safe during the pandemic.
7. You have the opportunity to watch the concert over and over … at least until Thursday, November 19th at 10:00 pm Hawaii time.

Here are the words I wrote down describing their performance: brilliant musicianship, virtuosic tempos, rhythmic precision, a visual and musical delight, the best of the best.

But don’t take my word for it. Here is what the former Executive Director of Early Music America, Maria Coldwell wrote: Outstanding concert! Just listened to Les Delices—what a wonderful concert!  So dramatic, and so well-produced. Congratulations on a great show! (Even though Maria lives in the Pacific Northwest, she and her husband have a condo in Hawaii and are friends of Early Music Hawaii.)

So, if you want to watch this outstanding concert for yourself, you can go to the Early Music Hawaii website here for the link and password. Viewing is free, but we ask that if you enjoyed it, you might send a donation.