The East Hampton Town board plans a public hearing on long-debated modifications to its music entertainment permit on May 21 — the eve of Memorial Day weekend — but its application in 2020, with the contours of a social distancing relaxation still to be determined by the Covid-19 pandemic’s progression, is uncertain.
Musicians on the South Fork have a more immediate concern than crowded summertime gigs: The restaurants and taverns that host their performances have been shuttered for more than a month, a body blow to their income as well as the creative expression and audience interaction on which they thrive. Those who teach music have also been challenged by social distancing protocols.
But technology, which has shaped music itself over the last century, provides today’s musicians multiple avenues to be heard and seen, even by a global audience. On the South Fork, they are taking advantage of digital tools for recording, performing, webcasting, making money, and doing good.
“Making a living in music is hard enough, and a lot of people are living month to month and don’t have a lot of savings,” said Bill O’Connell, a pianist, composer, and teacher who lives in Montauk and Rockland County. Since the pandemic shut down public assembly, he has lost a performance with his 10-piece Afro-Caribbean ensemble, a week of teaching and performing in the Cayman Islands, and gigs in and around New York City.
Still, Mr. O’Connell, who also teaches privately and at Rutgers University, considers himself fortunate. He continues to teach via Facetime and Skype. “It’s still a positive experience,” he said, “but of course not the same as teaching in person.” An ensemble course at Rutgers, he said, could not continue remotely.
One positive outcome of the pandemic, he said, is that “this has shown me I can do Skype teaching. I was always very reluctant to do it, but now that I see it can be done I may even try to expand that when things get back to normal, try to make that part of what I do in terms of teaching anyone throughout the world.”
Teaching via videoconference “can get me through a little bit, for a couple of months,” he said. “Not without pain,” but performing is “not the only way I make money. I feel for the guys who don’t have teaching gigs.”
Jane Hastay, also a pianist and teacher, is the director of music at the East Hampton Presbyterian Church. With worship online and its music prerecorded, she had to quickly learn software like GarageBand and iMovie, audio and video recording and editing programs that are preinstalled on Apple computers. She uses Zoom videoconferencing for private lessons and to “meet” with the church’s adult choir, and the Acapella app to create overdubbed “virtual ensemble” performances.
“I’ve been working with the ancient traditions of the church for a lot of my career,” she said, “which are great roots, and beautiful repertoire and instruments. I’ve been focusing on that, and I’ve been behind the times with my technical skills.” Now, “I’ve been learning one new technical skill every week or so.”
Last year Ms. Hastay had a regular solo gig at the Bridgehampton Inn. With her husband, the bassist Peter Martin Weiss, she performed frequently at venues including Pierre’s restaurant in Bridgehampton and, in the summer, the Ram’s Head Inn on Shelter Island. “I’m so glad that Peter is here with me,” she said, “because he’s familiar with GarageBand and iMovie. He’s been a tremendous help. In addition to playing, he’s an excellent editor.”
Ray Red, a guitarist and singer who performs on the East End and internationally, is using the internet to assist the venues that host his gigs. He is among the performers who have taken to Facebook Live, where in nightly, hourlong performances he promotes venues and their takeout-food offerings between songs, “almost like a D.J.,” he said.
“That’s the least we can do,” he said. “We don’t know who’s going to survive this thing. Everybody’s in the same boat: I’ve got to stay in practice; they’ve got to stay in business. These venues have always been there for us. They’ve always done us very well. The only thing I can do is try to help the restaurants. I can’t make money on that, but I can keep my name relevant and the places relevant” until they reopen. He recently booked performances in July and August, though with the understanding that they may not happen.
Klyph Black, a musician and sound engineer, has also taken to Facebook Live since his performances, including a tour of New England, were canceled. Gigs with other bands have been postponed by several months. “I play for an hour just to give people something to do,” he said of his online appearances.
Musicians performing online can take advantage of virtual “tip jar” smartphone apps like Jamjar and Tip Jar Music. Mr. Black is forgoing that option for the time being. “Maybe I’ll put the tip jar out if I’m starving,” he said, but “everybody needs money now. I understand it, and thought about doing it, but eventually this is going to be over. Come see me play.”
“The idea of a musician surviving on what he or she gets from the tip jar is not a reality,” said Michael LeClerc, a bassist who performs regularly with multiple artists, including Ray Red. He said this week that “we can still be creative and play as much as we want via the internet,” which he called “a nice and honorable thing, to provide entertainment to people who are down and out.”
As a core member of several bands and an in-demand sideman, “This is the time of year you’ve always got your book and you’re jockeying, trying to figure out what you’ve got, what’s available,” said Mr. LeClerc, who is legally blind. “I don’t look at my book much now, except to update cancellations.”
But the virtual world does not offer the same experience the real one does. Mr. O’Connell is using the downtime to write and arrange music, and to practice his instrument. “Practice is always a great thing, no matter what level you’re at,” he said. “Still, you practice, you feel good, and then there’s no outlet to get out there and play, to work through everything you’re working on. This is a performing art, and a social art, and we all need to play with each other. Including for an audience — the audience is a big part of a performance, too.”
Will that element of performance return? Only time will tell. “Even when things reopen,” Mr. LeClerc said, “I suspect the bars and restaurants may be last because of the crowds and close proximity. They’re losing their shirts right now, and one has to wonder if they will be able to afford entertainment in the future.”