Hybrid events are here to stay, say musicians

Corporate events are safer this way

For several months now, corporates have had 30-50% attendance of employees even in office. But when it comes to office parties, ideally everyone should be invited. This is where hybrid concerts come in handy.

Kashyap says, “When I am addressing them or the team members personally, I can see all of them on Zoom. And sometimes you can take their requests, which they send via messages. It’s nice and interactive, and that there is personalised attention for the people attending the virtual concert.”

It's a lot of work

Music composer Jigar Saraiya - of Sachin-Jigar - says the pandemic has affected our lives and the live music scene.

“Obviously music is a very important segment of the entertainment industry and that is the reason people have tried doing hybrid events and also online events during the last two years, some of which have worked and some of which haven’t," says Saraiya.

"I feel that there is a lot of work needed to be done for a live concert to be enjoyed online. I don’t think that it has the same impact as a live concert, and performing in front of an audience. It is definitely not the same as singing online. And that goes for both the audience and for the performer. So while there is definitely a rise in hybrid events, we still don’t know how good or how beneficial it is for the performer or for the audience. We performed for lots of gigs last month and most of them were wedding gigs and corporate events. We have also done ticketed events of late. We did our bit when the threat was less, but now we don’t know what the future holds in store,” Saraiya adds.

Live gigs are like fuel for musicians

Singer Akriti Kakar, who has been doing quite a few live shows in the last four-five months after things opened up last year, feels that it is tough for singers to go without live performances.

Kakar says, “Live gigs are like my fuel. I always come alive on stage.”

In the last quarter of 2021, Kakar has performed in Kolkata, Dubai, Delhi, Jodhpur, Chennai, Chandigarh, Ludhiana, Mumbai and a few other cities too. She has a five-piece core band and a sound engineer, and that has helped with her hybrid music gigs, too.

Yet, online events are a big reality

Just like many other musicians, popular Bollywood singer Shaan too went on music tours in the later part of last year. “I toured a lot, actually pretty extensively through the last three months,” he says. However, with uncertainty all around now, he feels that online and hybrid events are going to be a big part of our lives.

Bollywood singer Shilpa Rao, who is known for songs like "Ghungroo", "Khuda Jaane", "Subhanallah", "Aaj Jane Ki Zid Na Karo" and "Ishq Shava" among others, recently received her Grammy certificate for being part of the Grammy-nominated album 'Love Letters' by composer-sitarist Anoushka Shankar for the ‘Best Global Music Album’. Through last year when live singing was completely on hold, the singer was a part of online concerts. “It’s so heart-warming to interact with listeners online,” says Rao.

Also read: Musician Shekhar Ravjiani: Last couple of years have been among my most creatively rewarding

Monetarily, online events are not great for artistes

A major drawback of online and hybrid concerts for the artistes is they do not make the kind of money they would in live shows, despite investing similar effort in a hybrid concert.

“People feel that, ‘arre she’s just performing inside a studio’, but they don’t realise that our effort as artistes is equal. We put in as much and sometimes even more (effort) for an online or hybrid event. We have a full band with us at our studio that has to be hired, there is a full sound check that happens just like for our physical live concerts and so on," Kashyap says.

"Of course there is nothing to beat the energy and the engagement that you get spontaneously when you do a physical show which is live," Kashyap says. "Live shows are amazing and absolutely unparalleled and I’m really glad that I got to do multiple such shows last month.”

Setting up recording studios at home

Doing online music events from the confines of their homes was huge last year. Singer Shruti Pathak, known for her songs "Mar Jawaan" from the film Fashion, "Tujhe Bhula Diya" from Anjaana Anjaani and others, used most of early last year to hone her skills.

“I had created a small recording set-up at home last year, where I learnt new techniques to record,” says Pathak. She says that the pandemic has changed how musicians think, feel and respond and has made them rediscover a new side.

Technological advancements have made hybrid concerts an option

While the virtual format is actually convenient in these unprecedented times, it needs a lot to be really successful.

“Holding an online concert requires a massive group of people who are adept with digital technology because it cannot happen just like that. You need a very high speed Wi-Fi zone, an extremely professional studio set-up and are a proper band. This is what some of us artistes have learned in the last two years. You do need the sound and the quality of sound, etcetera, to be of the highest quality. All these are important in order to deliver a proper concert,” says Kashyap.

These days, especially in the last few months, there are professional tools and different hardware available to address varied production needs in order to have professional, best-in-class online events and concerts.

Both offline and online concerts are happening abroad

Shibani Kahyap recently did an online concert for Ticketmaster, known for its huge concerts with the likes of Madonna. “It was their annual awards, and I was surprised that they asked me to do a virtual concert for them, even though I was there in the US at that time. People are being really safe and cautious and are taking every precaution possible.”

Kashyap also did a few live concerts while in the US. “One of my offline concerts was with the American Association of Indian Physicians based in Long Island, New York. There were 650 people there who followed all protocols and were wearing masks all the time. They were all double vaccinated and also had their booster shots. I think that is the reason people abroad are all feeling much more confident. They were celebrating their silver anniversary and felicitating all the doctors who were well during the pandemic and I performed for them. They are all researching on Omicron and it was great to interact with them. My second concert was for the Bangladeshis who are based in America and the next one was in New Jersey. All these happened in early December 2021 and then I had to rush back because I didn’t want to get stuck.”