Thursday March 28th, 2024 5:55PM
5:31PM ( 24 minutes ago ) News Alert

UNG moving to online musical performances this fall

By Austin Eller News Director

Musicians and vocalists at the University of North Georgia are set to perform their concerts and recitals via online broadcasts this fall due to concerns about the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. 

According to a press release from UNG, most of the concerts will be recorded about two weeks in advance, and broadcast at a later date through UNG’s YouTube Channel. However, the annual music theater performance will be live-streamed, with some prerecorded segments mixed in. 

UNG is currently encouraging social distancing, limiting room capacities to a number that allows for proper social distancing, and requiring the wearing of masks inside all buildings and facilities. Current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines are groups should be no larger than 50 people. The press release states that performances with a live audience in the Gloria Shott Performance Hall in the Nix Fine Arts Center would not be possible with these rules. 

However, performances from the Dahlonega campus will still be recorded in the Gloria Shott Performance Hall for their online broadcast. A venue for the recording of performances for the Gainesville campus has not yet been determined, according to the press release.

The shift towards online performances is not the only change this fall for UNG musicians. According to Dr. Benjamin Schoening, Department Head of Music at UNG, the school’s musical ensembles have also been reduced in size.

“This fall we’ve moved away from larger ensembles, especially with the choir and the band, and moved to more of a chamber ensemble format,” Dr. Schoening said.

The choirs have been reduced to octets, whereas the wind ensemble and symphonic bands have been reduced to chamber groups ranging from 10 to 15 students in size, Dr. Schoening said..

This change has actually been helpful for students, according to Dr. Schoening.

“Because we’ve had to reduce the size of the ensembles, the students are getting a lot more of that chamber practice. They are learning a lot more autonomy as part of that ensemble experience,” Dr. Schoening said.

For a full list of upcoming concerts and recitals, visit UNG’s music events page.

  • Associated Categories: Homepage, Local/State News
  • Associated Tags: ung, University of North Georgia, band, Chorus, Performances
© Copyright 2024 AccessWDUN.com
All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission.