Interrupted Rhythms

The outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 was declared a public health emergency of national concern. The global spread of the virus resulted in a vast global economic crisis affecting numerous industries globally, with particularly devastating effects on the music industry. The live music sector was the most heavily impacted due to the imposing of national lockdowns and social distancing measures (Vecco et al., 2022). The global music industry developed innovative responses to continue artists’ line of work, most notably live-streaming on different platforms (Anderton, 2021). Nonetheless, the digital performance alternatives proved to be unfavorable for live musicians who typically perform in collectives to play remotely (Cai et al., 2021). Due to these factors, it is inevitable to wonder what the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic was on live musicians performing genres that were struggling before the commencement of the global crisis. According to research, jazz music is identified as a niche genre that encounters financial challenges and attracts limited audiences (Baicu, 2016). The jazz scene in the Netherlands specifically has endured great hardship due to ongoing budget cuts in the cultural sector for the past three decades (Dowling, 2012; DutchCulture, 2010; Holligan, 2012). For this reason, this research has a specific interest in the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on jazz musicians in the Netherlands which raises the question: “How has the Covid-19 pandemic affected jazz musicians in the Netherlands?”. To conduct this research, thematic analysis is employed to analyze semi-structured interviews with jazz musicians performing in the Netherlands. The study investigates the performing arts sector and the jazz industry in the Netherlands as well as the interferences of the Covid-19 pandemic in the global and local music industries in order to grasp comprehensive knowledge on the topic, which also assisted in the completion of a precise interview guide. The results of the thematic analysis revealed that the Covid-19 pandemic deepened preexisting issues in the jazz industry, namely limited performance opportunities and scarcity of performing venues. Additionally, the results showcased that jazz musicians in the Netherlands did engage in live-streaming performances but only in ones organized by governmentally funded venues because they received payment for their participation. An interesting finding that emerged was that not all jazz musicians were eligible for government subsidies during the pandemic due to the institutionalization of the profession in the Netherlands. The research concludes with an observation of the positive effect of the Covid-19 pandemic on the personal lives of jazz musicians, as the lack of professional responsibilities opened more time for self and professional development.