h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

f they book a large enough auditorium, the audience can sit in every other chair. The audience isn't singing, so as long as they wear masks and don't bump into each other, there shouldn't be a problem.

I think it's doable.

Except you can't socially distance the singers - the stage wouldn't be large enough & the quality of the sound would be affected.

I'm expecting it will be along time before my local choir resumes. We are approx 25 - 30 people & need to be fairly close to produce a good body of sound (although I suppose depends on the acoustic properties of the venue). Also in rehearsal it helps if we can hear each other in our separate voice parts. We usually rehearse in our local village hall but when that re-opens, capacity will probably be severely reduced for distancing so we'd have to move from our usual room to a large hall, all spread out. Apart from any increased risk with all that extra breathing out!

We don't expect to take up choir practice again until at least the autumn. Even then we are thinking of just meeting one part - the sopranos are the larget contingent with about 10 members.

That way we will hopefully be able to stage a full choral midnight mass at Christmas.

I started to watch the Gareth Malone sessions but found them so chaotic, it was painful, and boring, to follow.

I've been dipping into the home choir Quarantine choir with Ben England which has been enjoyable. I've never been keen on Gareth Malone.

The size of the choir would make a difference. Six to eight singers could be arranged four feet apart around the performing space. I don'think six feet of space is necessary, as long as they all wear masks and don't touch each other.

I can't imagine they could sing with a mask over their mouth.

Ah, but let's imagine that, hidden behind each mask is a tiny microphone.

I think they'd still start to expire from singing behind a mask, due to the extra breathing entailed.
There's also be competition to stand in the back row rather than front!

"I can't imagine they could sing with a mask over their mouth." - Still Incognitas


How about over their entire heads?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Masked_Singer_(American_TV_series)


I've never watched this, or any of the popular Karaoke / talent shows on TV these days (I blame you Brits for starting it all with Pop Idol), but the gist is some celebrity singer dons a huge flamboyant costume with a big head and sings in front of a panel who try to guess their identity... or at least that's what I think it is.

Weirdly this premiered well before the Pandemic.

Just heard my pop choir is planning to resume rehearsals in July.
Outside and/or via Zoom. In my opinion it is a bit early.

We used to clutter together with our voice groups for better focus and harmony. Not anymore I guess… It is probably a bigger problem for the tenors anyway. Despite there being ten of them and five of us bass singers, they have trouble making themselves heard (could be our fault, or the legions of sopranos and mezzos)

Good luck to them.

Aanalysis of sludge indicates that at least ten times as many Massachusettsians have gotten Coronavirus than has shown up in the official statistics. Thus, 13% of the population is presumed immune now, not enough for herd immunity.

At last, that's what I have herd.

13% of the population.... in Massachusetts. In theory.

A lot of what we believe is based on estimates.

A lot of conservatives have swallowed this idea of aiming for herd immunity.

Herd immunity is great when it's based on vaccination rates. What they ignore is the obvious fact that to attain herd immunity without vaccines requires maximum exposure and therefore maximum number of deaths.

Oh I think the UK government are very well aware of what they are doing..

At the current rate in the US between infected and deceased, you are talking about 20 million-ish deaths...

It's worse than that, when you think about it. Recovered patients still suffer extensive damage to their lungs, and will almost certainly have lifelong health effects afterwards.

That too...

It's becoming harder and harder to socially distance. Groups refuse to walk single file along pavements that aren't 2 metres wide.Not a problem if the traffic hadn't increased and I could walk in the road safely.

On an early morning walk groups are turning up to set out for a family barbecue/picnic/sunbathing session on the seafront. I'm getting a workout just avoiding everyone by walking 2 metres around each group.

It's as if everyone has already decided lockdown is over completely because some people barely give me a metre space.

Also some children just can't seem to socially distance so I can't see schools opening will be safe whatever distancing solutions are arrived at.

And yet my OH has been instructed to stay home until the 30th of June.

Maybe everyone should wear an inflatable sumo-wrestler-suit to make it physically impossible to come any closer to eachother.