During the 2020 holiday season, singers, groups, and organizations shifted in the face of the ongoing global health crisis and produced virtual or recorded holiday performances. This December, fueled by love for singing, the desire to share joy, and an emphasis on health and safety protocols, choruses adjusted to the times, and shared holiday glee with live audiences once again in innovative ways. Here we spotlight a few unique performances filled with the holiday spirit from this year’s season! 

As early as May 2020, researchers identified COVID-19 to be highly transmissible through singing and choral musicians had to pivot quickly. Overnight, music educators and choral conductors became experts in planning asynchronous Zoom rehearsals and producing virtual choirs, allowing their ensembles to continue creating through the pandemic. 

With some help from Silicon Valley, we may be on our way to overcoming the choral field’s most persistent hurdle during the pandemic—latency from internet connections that prevents choruses from truly being able to hear each other and sing together synchronously online. Software entrepreneur Mike Dickey, a parent of the Ragazzi Boys Chorus of San Mateo, California, worked with Stanford University researchers to develop a technology platform called JackTrip Virtual Studio that makes real-time remote singing possible with common internet connections.