An up-to-date list of Canadian live streams to watch during COVID-19
Holly Gordon, Jesse Kinos-Goodin | CBC Music | Posted: May 5, 2020 2:43 PM | Last Updated: June 8, 2020
This week: Jully Black, Shred Kelly and others perform from their homes
Editor's note: as of Tuesday, June 9, this post will no longer be updated.
This time of social distancing is necessary but difficult, putting a big strain on people whose livelihoods depend on bringing people together. And while musicians have been cancelling tours and plans daily, they still want to bring their art to the masses — and hopefully drum up some revenue in the process, from fans who are able to contribute during this tough financial time.
As the coronavirus pandemic progresses, CBC Music will be keeping an eye out for Canadian musicians' live streams and efforts to keep creating while most people are self-isolating. We'll keep updating this list as often as possible, but if something's missing please let us know via Twitter: @CBCMusic.
This week
- June 9, 4 p.m. ET: Tune in to the announcement of the Royal Conservatory of Music's 2020-21 concert season, which boasts appearances by Kronos Quartet, Dianne Reeves, Skratch Bastid and others. Watch on Facebook.
- June 11, 7 p.m. ET: the Minanzi Mbira Band perform a blend of mbira, djembe and Shona-inspired songs. This is the group's first online performance. Tickets are $6 via Side Door.
- June 12, 9 p.m. ET: Jully Black performs as part of the DT Concert Series, which is run out of the Dominion Telegraph venue in Paris, Ont. All tickets are available at DTConcertSeries.com and the concert will be live streamed via Zoom.
- June 11, 1 p.m. ET: Shred Kelly hosts an intimate pre-release listening party for the band's upcoming album, Like a Rising Sun, out June 19. Tickets are $10, via Side Door.
Week of June 15 to 21
- June 18, 3 p.m. ET: Toronto-based Xenia Concerts, a series designed specifically for autistic audience members, presents the fourth live stream in their series, this time featuring Angela Park. According to the Xenia Concerts website, "The concerts will feature many of the same elements that are present at a typical live Xenia Concert, including stretch breaks, and a downloadable program with program checklist that you can use to follow along during the performance." Watch it via Facebook Live.
- June 19, 7:30 p.m. ET: Montreal's Frase performs as part of Ballytobin Live from the Isabel Online Summer Music Festival. Watch via Facebook.
- June 20, 3 p.m. ET: Sadaf Amini performs as part of Ballytobin Live from the Isabel Online Summer Music Festival. Watch via Facebook.
- June 20, 9 p.m. ET: Royal Wood performs as part of the DT Concert Series, which is run out of the Dominion Telegraph venue in Paris, Ont. All tickets are available at DTConcertSeries.com and the concert will be live streamed via Zoom.
- June 21, 7:30 p.m. ET: Leanne Betasamosake Simpson and her band perform as part of Ballytobin Live from the Isabel Online Summer Music Festival. Watch via Facebook.
Week of June 22 to 28
- June 25, 8 a.m. ET: Pianist Angela Hewitt performs music by J.S. Bach, including English Suite No. 6 and French Suite No. 5, live from Wigmore Hall in London, England. Watch on Wigmore Hall's website.
- June 25, 7:30 p.m. AT: tune in for Online Encore: Brahms with Holly Mathieson, a rebroadcast from Symphony Nova Scotia, originally having taken place on Nov. 7, 2019, at the Rebecca Cohn Auditorium in Halifax. Watch via Facebook.
- June 27, 7:30 p.m.: Guitarist Adam Cicchillitti plays music by Scarlatti, Barrios, Roux, Rodrigo and Tansman. It's the seventh instalment in the Concerts for the End of Time series. Tune in on Facebook Live.
- June 29, 9 p.m. ET: Skydiggers performs as part of the DT Concert Series, which is run out of the Dominion Telegraph venue in Paris, Ont. All tickets are available at DTConcertSeries.com and the concert will be live streamed via Zoom.
Fall 2020
- Oct. 9-17: the Celtic Colours International Festival will take place at everyone's home this year, with programming details to come. Get more information via Facebook.
Ongoing
- May 25 to June 7, 7:30 p.m. AT daily: the 2020 Scotia Festival of Music, a 14-day free festival of chamber music, moves to Facebook.
- Thursdays, 7 p.m. ET: Jess Moskaluke hosts a live show via Instagram, with special guests announced weekly.
- Saturdays, 12 p.m. PT: Dan Mangan hosts a weekly Side Door show called #Quarantunes. Tickets are $6, and you can buy them via Side Door.
- Daily, 1 p.m ET: Arkells frontman Max Kerman offers up a music class on the band's Instagram page, complete with fan call-ins and special guests.
- May 15-June 30: Halifax festival Every Seeker, formerly OBEY Convention, is moving its 2020 edition online, but instead of one weekend of shows it's now more than a month-long series of artists' creations. Called Emergent Response, the lineup includes Aquakultre, Joyfultalk, Kwento, Kevin Howes and more. Head to everyseeker.com for details and the schedule, updated every week.
- Sundays, 4 p.m. AT: Danny Michel performs his weekly show Live From Lockdown via Side Door. Tickets are $7.
- Wednesdays, 3 p.m. ET: Paper Beat Scissors performs weekly from his Montreal home. Watch via YouTube.
- Wednesdays, 7:30 p.m. ET: Deidrey Francois performs her Sofa SongFest every week, an hour-long set for singing, dancing and song requests. Via her YouTube channel.
- Nightly, 9 p.m. ET: Jim Clayton has been performing nightly "piano bar" streams since the pandemic began, where he takes requests from his growing audience. The evening includes a virtual tip jar, which goes to Glad Day Bookshop's emergency fund, helping artists, performers and tip-workers from the LGBTQ+ community. Check it out via Facebook.
- Every Saturday, 11 a.m ET: Juno-nominated singer-songwriter Jeremy Fisher will play weekly live concerts for parents and children, running now until mid-June, via Facebook.
- Tuesdays, 7 p.m. ET: Caveboy celebrates the release of its debut album with Tunesdays, where members Michelle Bensimon, Isabelle Banos and Lana Cooney break down the stories behind the songs on Night in the Park, Kiss in the Dark. Tune in via Instagram.
- Daily, 2 p.m. ET: Oshawa, Ont., band Crown Lands give live music classes and host talks in their Instagram Stories.
- Tuesdays and Thursdays, 5 p.m. ET: Toronto-based Melissa Lamm performs original songs and covers by audience request via Twitch.
- Saturdays, 3 p.m. AT: Coco Love Alcorn performs a weekly interactive series called Songs of Hope and Healing, via Side Door. Tickets are $7.
- Sundays, 7 p.m. PT: the Meeks Duo, consisting of Scott Meek and Clare Yuan, perform from their home through YouTube and Facebook. "We plan to do a new program every Sunday until we run out of repertoire, or until the virus gets under control, whichever comes first!" writes Meek via email.
- Sundays until June 21: Tom Jackson hosts Almighty Voices, a digital, hour-long variety series in support of the Unison Benevolent Fund. The show will feature Susan Aglukark, Beverley Mahood, Sarah Slean, the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, Chantal Kreviazuk, Measha Brueggergosman and more. Watch it via YouTube and AlmightyVoices.ca.
- Tuesdays, 7:30 p.m. ET: l'Orchestre classique de Montréal will host a 45-minute session with one of the solo performers from their 2020-21 season. All performances will stream on their Facebook page.
- The Facebook group Ottawa Live Music Streams! has been created "to serve as a virtual venue to showcase our region's musical talent," and urged fans to get in contact with live-streaming musicians to tip them for their efforts. The page is constantly updated with both live streams and recorded performances.
- Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 8 p.m. ET: l'Orchestre symphonique de Montréal will stream a concert from its archive. "While we hit the pause button on our live shows, we will be more present than ever on our digital platforms," reads an email statement. "The OSM invites you to experience great musical moments from the comfort of your living room."
- Tuesdays, 2-3 p.m. and 7:05-8 p.m. PT: Alex Maher performs Quaranstreams, a live-streaming looped performance. Half of the proceeds go to rotating charities, with the April 28 proceeds going to Mental Health Foundation of Nova Scotia. Watch via Facebook, YouTube or Instagram
- Wednesdays, 2 p.m. MT: The Blue Jay Sessions, which normally involve Canadian musicians playing in songwriters' rounds every two months at a Calgary venue, have gone virtual — and weekly. The next session on May 27 will feature Liz, Michael Daniels, Lisa Nicole and Taylor-Rae. Tune in via Facebook. (The Sessions collect donations/tips via a PayPal link and distribute evenly among the performers each week.)
- After leading a successful "So Long, Marianne" sing-along from her Montreal balcony on March 22, Martha Wainwright will host the event every week with a range of other musical guests. Check out URSA Mtl's Facebook page for dates and times each week.
- Daily, noon ET: for five to 10 minutes each day, a member of the National Arts Centre Orchestra will take to YouTube for a lunch break, which could be "anything," as NAC Orchestra music director Alexander Shelley said via the announcement video, including chatting or playing music. Check out a recent one, from May 27, below, featuring NACO violinist Manuela Milani performing Passacaglia in G Minor by baroque composer Heinrich Biber.
- Wednesdays, 7 p.m. PT: Chor Leoni Men's Choir will host a weekly live stream titled Chor Leoni Inside. According to the press release, the choir will incorporate "high-quality concert videos from the past seven years of Chor Leoni concerts, plus new video content from the choir's albums." Each live stream will also feature a musician. Watch it on Facebook or YouTube.