The Live Mass concert offers a look at music in the post-pandemic era

Photographer: Angel Garcia / Bloomberg

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While the musicians play their electric guitars in the first chords, the singer goes on stage, grabs the microphone and shouts: “All the weirdos were there at the concert, of the great mind reader in Dublin”.

At his feet, 5,000 electrified fans sing, jump and dance at hit indie pop. It could be any Saturday night concert in 2019, if not for the masks, the smell of disinfectant and the tickets that prove a negative Covid-19 test.

“Don’t take off your masks, because the success of live music in Europe and in the world depends on this concert tonight,” says singer Santi Balmes between songs. Before the music started, the huge screens showed videos of doctors encouraging people to follow the rules.

The audience, the staff and the band – Love of Lesbian – are part of a mass experiment that the organizers say is the biggest concert without social distance in the coronavirus era. Saturday’s event in Barcelona provides an insight into what mass gatherings might look like for a long time after the pandemic has disappeared.

“If we can prove that you can gather 5,000 people using quick tests, then we open the door to do many other things,” said Gemma Recoder, one of the organizers and director of the Canet Rock festival. “It’s a key step not only for live music, but for everything from conferences to sporting events.”

To enter, you could not show up at Sant Jordi Stadium a few minutes before the start and get a ticket at the door. Fans had to download an app, enter their contact details and book an hour for a quick Covid test on the day of the concert.

People who gave negative results received a code to enter the building, while those who gave positive were offered a refund. Inside, the masks were mandatory, and the public was divided into three areas where there were about 1,600 people.

The event was organized by the organizers of the largest music festivals in Spain, including Sonar, Primavera Sound and Cruilla Barcelona Festival, in partnership with regional health authorities, doctors and epidemiologists at the Germans Trias i Pujol Hospital in the nearby town of Badalona.

A pilot concert in December follows in Barcelona, ​​which gathered 500 people. Preparations for the second phase lasted Monday, Recoder said, and included the following advice on health protocols and a renovation of the stadium’s ventilation equipment.

“The air you breathe now has the same quality as the air outside,” said Jordi Herreruela, organizer and director of the Cruilla Barcelona Festival. “Doctors tell us that it might be safer to attend the concert than to go on the street, because we have created a balloon in which we know everyone is being tested.”

The data of the attendants were crossed with the data from the public health authorities, so if someone gives positive results during the two weeks after the concert, the organizers will know.