Many of the most prestigious orchestras in Germany staged a minute of silence on Monday at 8:00 p.m. to protest the shutdown of the culture sector in November because of the coronavirus pandemic.
At the call of the Alarmstuferot group, musicians from the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, the Munich Opera, and the Berlin Staatskapelle orchestra took the stage.
But instead of performing, videos posted on social media showed that they remained silent in front of an empty hall since the public is no longer allowed to go to concert halls, AFP reported.
On Twitter, some artists chose to play a soundless music record or to post photos with a caption reading: "Without art and culture, it's silence."
This step aimed to draw attention to "the lack of sufficient financial support for people working in this sector."
As of Monday and for the next four weeks, all cultural establishments, from concert halls to theaters and museums, have to close their doors.
Culture Minister Monika Gruetters admitted she is "very worried" about the sector, in which work many freelancers without a safety net. "Even though the new restrictions are understandable from a health perspective, they constitute a catastrophe for the sector," she said.
