Music for Self-Isolation

Music for Self-Isolation is a multi-faceted collaborative project conceived by Canadian composer Frank Horvat. In March 2020, at the outset of the global COVID-19 pandemic, Horvat composed 31 short solo and duo works for various instruments and voice, dedicating each piece to musician friends navigating the uncertainty of cancelled concerts and an abruptly transformed artistic landscape. Since its launch, musicians from around the world have shared more than 150 video performances of the Music for Self-Isolation works online.

As these performances began circulating online, they sparked conversations about the profound challenges musicians were facing during the pandemic. These exchanges inspired Horvat to launch “Phase 2” of Music for Self-Isolation. With support from the Canada Council for the Arts, he interviewed eight musicians who had contributed performances to the project and created a series of audio documentary compositions that captured and reflected their Pandemic Stories.

As the pandemic continued and live performance opportunities remained largely unavailable, Horvat expanded the project further by producing a full album of the compositions — both as an artistic response and as a way of documenting this extraordinary moment in history. Recorded in Roy Thomson Hall, the album brought together musicians in one of Toronto’s most iconic concert venues, pairing its pristine acoustics with the haunting poignancy of artists performing in an otherwise empty hall. Alongside the original suite of pieces and the audio documentaries, the album also premiered a new composition, Together in Spirit, an ensemble work uniting all of the instruments and voices featured in the original suite. Each musician’s part was recorded individually and later woven together in post production, allowing the collective spirit of the music to shine through. Supported by the Toronto Arts Council and FACTOR, the album was released on the Centrediscs label on April 9, 2021, marking the first anniversary of Canada’s initial pandemic lockdown.

A documentary film by Adam Crosby chronicling the album recording process and sharing additional stories from participating musicians was also filmed during the album recording sessions. The documentary premiered on May 21, 2021 through Gramophone, one of the world’s leading classical music publications.

Music for Self-Isolation proudly supported the work of the Unison Fund, a registered charity providing counselling and emergency relief services to members of the Canadian music community.