All the music, art and culture you can start live streaming through lockdown
Chris Martin, Saransh Goila, Prateek Kuhad, puppies, sharks, paintings and more…
The 21-day lockdown has us shutting out the outside world, with a Laxman Rekha drawn across our doors. Coronavirus anxiety may have you feeling disconnected from the world around you, but humanity has come together to entertain each other through it — by harnessing the power of live streaming.
Chris Martin made hearts melt by live streaming a concert on Coldplay’s Instagram. John Legend picked up the baton with his show, though we were more enamoured by our internet BFF Chrissy Teigen.
It has kicked off a stream of spontaneous performances, concerts and cultural events we would otherwise have to shell out big bucks for.
Art galleries and museums around the world have opened up their cyber doors with virtual tours and exhibits to share a little bit of culture and art across borders.
Under the #togetherathome hashtag, people are sharing their lives, skills and expertise for others to enjoy and learn from. Some genius minds even created The Social Distancing Festival, a platform curating global live stream events and performance in a directory.
From live streaming workouts to watching adorable animals, here are some of the cultural events, tours and shows that we’re tuning into.
Live streaming music and performances
Talent management agency Big Bad Wolf organised live-streaming concerts of their own starting March 25. Their roster has musicians, magicians and comedians, including Prateek Kuhad, Indian Ocean, Vir Das, Karsh Kale, Kamakshi Khanna and Aisi Taisi Democracy – all of whom will be going live on their own social media platforms.
Find the complete schedule on their Instagram page.
The Seattle Symphony is offering free broadcasts on their YouTube and Facebook pages.
“As our community comes together in this time of crisis, the Seattle Symphony will continue sharing performances that provide strength, comfort and joy,” the symphony’s website stated.
Their musicians continue to play from home and live stream on YouTube and Facebook.
The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra was booked to perform Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade but had to cancel due to their government regulations. They powered ahead, without an audience and live-streamed the concert for all to see on their YouTube channel.
The Royal Opera House, UK has programmed online shows and virtual performances from some of the most world-renowned ballet dancers and opera singers. Their live broadcasts will begin on March 27 on Facebook and YouTube.
Live stream a virtual animal safari
Zoos, animal shelters and sanctuaries around the world are giving people some much-needed emotional relief with live streams, animal cams and virtual tours.
Zoos Victoria is streaming live animal cams (zebras, snow leopards to lions and penguins) across their institutions in Melbourne.
Shenshuping Gengda Panda Center in China’s Wolong Valley has a live stream of their clumsy pandas. Watching them stumble around like little drunk babies is our version of soothing self-care.
If you’re more of the adrenaline junkie, you can check out the shark cam run by Explore Oceans. This isn’t for the weak-hearted.
Find lounging lions and their cubs streaming on The Aspinall Foundation’s channel. And you can never go wrong with a good ‘ol puppy playroom.
Live stream for wellness and living
Fitness entrepreneurs and yoga teachers have taken to Instagram to offer quick workout videos so you don’t have to break your new year’s resolution.
You finally have the time to learn how to cook. Chef Saransh Goila starts his morning streaming live between 9 – 10 AM, with recipes we can follow along with at home.
Nutrition and exercise science expert, Rujuta Diwekar is constantly posting yoga routines, workout videos and food tips on her Instagram page.
Rumble has kickstarted a daily live stream schedule of featuring cardio and bodyweight workouts. Planet Fitness streams live-at-home workouts on their Facebook page to get you sweating.
Lululemon released a schedule for the week of their live stream yoga classes, meditation guides and other wellness tips.
More than anything, we need to get out of our heads and kill the panic that we’re inevitably going to feel. Tune in to Ten Percent Happier‘s daily live stream guided meditation to get out of your head during this social distancing period.
Take a virtual tour through galleries and museums
National Gallery Victoria: Victoria, Melbourne has over 75,000 works digitised and available online. They even offer free virtual exhibitions which they’re constantly updating.
This your chance to get up close and personal with Sandro Botticelli’s infamous ‘Birth of Venus’ through Italian Uffizi Gallery’s virtual tours. The ceilings themselves are pure works of art, painted by Alessandro Allori.
Vermeer and the Masters of Genre Painting are currently being exhibited online by the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Their overall digitised collection is fantastic, especially the Modern Art gallery.
Spot Banksy’s murals through Google street view and take in the settings and surroundings which house these gems.
When it comes to museums, visiting the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History in Washington DC is on every history buff’s bucket list. A virtual tour serves an escape into a bygone time of dinosaurs and more. This is a great option to engage your children and learn something too.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, has an array of historical objects displaying online, each with an audio guide to fully immerse yourself into the experience.
If you want to take a trip to Russia instead, a tour of the iconic Hermitage museum can be a day-long affair. They gave us an extensive 5-hour-long tour of art, architecture and 45 galleries online.
So put that extra screen time to good use, and allow your mind to escape to exotic lands offering rich cultural experiences.