After Events Ban, Seattle Symphony Takes Performances Online

SEATTLE, WA — The Seattle Symphony will share its performances over the internet after the governor's mandate to ban gatherings of 250 people or more. Benaroya Hall, the orchestra's home, has canceled all public events through March 31.

Related: Washington Bans Large Gatherings, Events To Slow Coronavirus

In a post shared Thursday, the symphony said it would broadcast high-quality streams of several performances in the weeks ahead online, for free.

"I believe music has the power to transform lives and bring people together in new and surprising ways," said Thomas Dausgaard, the music director. "Even though we can't gather at Benaroya Hall, I'm so happy we'll still be sharing musical moments together, whether you're at home in Seattle or halfway across the world."

The first online broadcast was scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Thursday. According to the symphony's website, the inaugural stream will be a rebroadcast of Mahler's Symphony No. 1, originally performed in September 2019. It will be streamed on YouTube and Facebook.

You can find a complete list of the orchestra's planned broadcasts here. The symphony said more dates will be added to the page as they are scheduled.