Side Street Sounds: The Strange Sound of Summer 2020
- By STEVE WEST –
Creative Venues Offer Musical Sanctuary during the Summer of COVID-19.
And so continues the strange summer of 2020 in the live music world. Venues are walking the fine line between supporting live music, and not attracting too much of a crowd that can’t maintain the proper social distance. Damned if you do, damned if you don’t.
Venues that offer outdoor music have managed to adapt the best to the post-Covid requirements. The Beachcomber on Conesus Lake has allowed acoustic, solo and duo acts to perform for guests. In Rochester, Marge’s Lakeside Inn and Abilene have restarted their summer out-door music schedules. In Canandaigua, Lincoln Hill Farms is hosting bands. All of these venues require customers to wear masks when not seated. Social distancing of at least 6 feet is encouraged, and groups are limited to 10 people or less. Hand sanitizer stations are present at each location.
In July, Fanatics in Lima started hosting bands from a parking lot stage, restricting concert goers to their cars and the parking spaces immediately adjacent to one side of their vehicle (see back page).
Because they have not yet been able to open their normal operations, Roseland Water Park in Canandaigua has made use of their large parking lot and have tried to follow, with some success, Fanatics’ example.
Every step forward is shadowed by challenges, and the possibility that policies can change overnight if the statistics take a turn for the worse. The venues that support live music are struggling to stay afloat after the long NY pause, and the cooperation of their customers will be vital to their success.
Face coverings and social distancing are inconvenient, but they are currently mandated as part of the requirements for venues to re-open. We must adapt and accept COVID compliance, for the foreseeable future. That is the only way we’re going to be able to support musicians and live music venues, and enjoy live music.
Steve West streams live on Facebook every Sunday, 11am-2pm. Other gigs and info. can be found at:
www.stevewestmusic.com/