International artist touring is still no Schorr thing….
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Covid-19 and the global pandemic continues to be a concern, albeit with vaccinations and various protocols now allowing – rightly or wrongly – for less restrictions and large attendance events taking place.
Those concerns are reflected in turn by artists and bands desperate to tour but, for a myriad of obvious health and safety reasons (and the larger infrastructure of mechanics and personnel involved) cannot, will not, or dare not.
It also of course highlights the major talking point of the current, seemingly lessening crisis – the clear dividing line between those (both artists and fans) who are happy to take the seemingly lessened risk, desperate to get back to live gigs (and many tens of thousands have in recent weeks) and those that are very much still erring on the side of Covid caution and the statistics, not yet close to being comfortable regarding attendance at any event, no matter the size and no matter the precautions being taken or implemented.
(I personally, for reasons that need not be cited here, am in that latter camp but have many good friends who are very much of the former mind-set).
Those concerns are reflected in turn by artists and bands desperate to tour but, for a myriad of obvious health and safety reasons (and the larger infrastructure of mechanics and personnel involved) cannot, will not, or dare not.
It also of course highlights the major talking point of the current, seemingly lessening crisis – the clear dividing line between those (both artists and fans) who are happy to take the seemingly lessened risk, desperate to get back to live gigs (and many tens of thousands have in recent weeks) and those that are very much still erring on the side of Covid caution and the statistics, not yet close to being comfortable regarding attendance at any event, no matter the size and no matter the precautions being taken or implemented.
(I personally, for reasons that need not be cited here, am in that latter camp but have many good friends who are very much of the former mind-set).
Travel bag packed for not 2021 but 2022....
New York blues-rock singer/songwriter Sari Schorr is one such casualty of Covid cancelled touring.
What makes that all the more impacting and difficult for Sari is her musical nature and love of performance make it almost unnatural to not be touring, playing live and connecting directly with her fans.
But she is also very much aware of the consequences of getting the virulent facts wrong.
The following press release excerpts from Sari Schorr on the ever-changing landscape of her upcoming autumn tour of Europe and England is both very telling and, as it turned out, the perfect example of how quickly things can change – within a day of this press release hitting music sites and media outlets it was out-of-date, with the entire tour cancelled.
(FabricationsHQ makes no excuse for not running the press release when first made available, knowing inherently, and with some foreboding, of what was to follow).
However it is worth reading every single word of the following, by both those who are acutely aware of the risks and ramifications and by those who still can’t understand what all the double-jabbed fuss is about.
In short, an articulate, emotional and accurate picture of the risks, potential repercussions of taking such risks and resolving oneself with the touring decisions taken.
"I’ve spent much of the last eighteen months in isolation. I struggle with depression and obsessive thinking. Being grounded from touring has been a persistent stressor.
"It feels like a frantic game of Whack-a-Mole as Covid restrictions and quarantine mandates pop up every day. My tour diary has been revised so many times Neil Young would say, ‘the devil fools with the best-laid plans.’
"As restrictions ease throughout Europe, last-minute bookings are coming in, but we’re struggling to find affordable flights and accommodations at short notice.
An international tour can take six months of planning, but operating under the pandemic affords bands little more than a few weeks of hasty preparation.
"The short lead-time also presents a financial risk since proper promotion is curbed. Besides, we fear audiences may not yet return to live music in pre-Covid numbers."
- Sari Schorr
The last line is both pertinent and critical to the financial viability of touring – as mentioned above, it’s highly unlikely I will attend any concert of any size this year and will be reviewing (no pun intended) the situation next spring.
And I’m far from the only one; for every two fans grabbing a ticket for whatever gig is available and reachable there is at least one other not yet comfortable with the idea, or with health concerns that negate the possibility of travel to, and attendance of, such events.
Thus a tour that would have been predicted to have made a profit or at least covered itself, now may not.
But as Sari Schorr continues:
"The complications don’t stop there. Rules on mask-wearing, proof of double-vaccination, and/or Covid-negative tests vary from venue to venue across the entire tour. There is so much confusion and uncertainty, you can’t escape the anxiety.
I realize there is no one-size-fits-all solution, but my priority is to keep my band and fans safe.
The pandemic has made us all face circumstances beyond our control. I’m acknowledging the psychological impact while incorporating a sense of resilience by changing my perspective on things."
That priority and change of perspective are part entwined in the cancellation of the autumn 2021 tour but Sari Schorr is but one of a very large number overseas (and nearer home) acts who have decided to, or reluctantly had to, put all touring plans on hold.
Yet, as Sari Schorr said in signing off, while Covid-19 might be restricting our freedoms, "I remind myself that freedom is having the opportunity to dream. And, Covid can’t kill my dreams."
Sari Schorr will be rescheduling the cancelled dates for early 2022.
By way of recompense, Sari has confirmed she will be committing her new found, non-touring time to accelerating progress on her next album, which will see release next year.
Here’s to the new album, less of a Covid presence and a fuller return to live life, as heard to fine effect below.
Ross Muir
FabricationsHQ
What makes that all the more impacting and difficult for Sari is her musical nature and love of performance make it almost unnatural to not be touring, playing live and connecting directly with her fans.
But she is also very much aware of the consequences of getting the virulent facts wrong.
The following press release excerpts from Sari Schorr on the ever-changing landscape of her upcoming autumn tour of Europe and England is both very telling and, as it turned out, the perfect example of how quickly things can change – within a day of this press release hitting music sites and media outlets it was out-of-date, with the entire tour cancelled.
(FabricationsHQ makes no excuse for not running the press release when first made available, knowing inherently, and with some foreboding, of what was to follow).
However it is worth reading every single word of the following, by both those who are acutely aware of the risks and ramifications and by those who still can’t understand what all the double-jabbed fuss is about.
In short, an articulate, emotional and accurate picture of the risks, potential repercussions of taking such risks and resolving oneself with the touring decisions taken.
"I’ve spent much of the last eighteen months in isolation. I struggle with depression and obsessive thinking. Being grounded from touring has been a persistent stressor.
"It feels like a frantic game of Whack-a-Mole as Covid restrictions and quarantine mandates pop up every day. My tour diary has been revised so many times Neil Young would say, ‘the devil fools with the best-laid plans.’
"As restrictions ease throughout Europe, last-minute bookings are coming in, but we’re struggling to find affordable flights and accommodations at short notice.
An international tour can take six months of planning, but operating under the pandemic affords bands little more than a few weeks of hasty preparation.
"The short lead-time also presents a financial risk since proper promotion is curbed. Besides, we fear audiences may not yet return to live music in pre-Covid numbers."
- Sari Schorr
The last line is both pertinent and critical to the financial viability of touring – as mentioned above, it’s highly unlikely I will attend any concert of any size this year and will be reviewing (no pun intended) the situation next spring.
And I’m far from the only one; for every two fans grabbing a ticket for whatever gig is available and reachable there is at least one other not yet comfortable with the idea, or with health concerns that negate the possibility of travel to, and attendance of, such events.
Thus a tour that would have been predicted to have made a profit or at least covered itself, now may not.
But as Sari Schorr continues:
"The complications don’t stop there. Rules on mask-wearing, proof of double-vaccination, and/or Covid-negative tests vary from venue to venue across the entire tour. There is so much confusion and uncertainty, you can’t escape the anxiety.
I realize there is no one-size-fits-all solution, but my priority is to keep my band and fans safe.
The pandemic has made us all face circumstances beyond our control. I’m acknowledging the psychological impact while incorporating a sense of resilience by changing my perspective on things."
That priority and change of perspective are part entwined in the cancellation of the autumn 2021 tour but Sari Schorr is but one of a very large number overseas (and nearer home) acts who have decided to, or reluctantly had to, put all touring plans on hold.
Yet, as Sari Schorr said in signing off, while Covid-19 might be restricting our freedoms, "I remind myself that freedom is having the opportunity to dream. And, Covid can’t kill my dreams."
Sari Schorr will be rescheduling the cancelled dates for early 2022.
By way of recompense, Sari has confirmed she will be committing her new found, non-touring time to accelerating progress on her next album, which will see release next year.
Here’s to the new album, less of a Covid presence and a fuller return to live life, as heard to fine effect below.
Ross Muir
FabricationsHQ