Online professorship search committee hearings, digital entrance exams, blended learning—the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic has catalysed the digitisation process in education. And at the mdw, the Audio/Video Centre—part of the University’s Information Technology Department (ZID)—has been a strong institution-wide partner in these trying times.

Elisabeth Stein, who teaches at the Department of Music and Movement Education/Rhythmics and Music Physiology, relates her experiences with COVID-19.

253 participants from 27 countries, 39 online events, and 22 hours of live streaming from 18 to 24 August: these are the hard facts of this year’s isaDigital.

Behind any person’s favourite song, there’s a personal story—and behind the project lieblingslied.at [Lieblingslied = favourite song—Trans.], launched in March 2020 by the Department of Music Therapy in light of Austria’s COVID-19 lockdown, there’s likewise a story. It’s a story that we’d like to briefly summarise here.

The International Franz Schmidt Organ Competition Vienna is held every two years, and the present year witnessed its eighth edition. Twenty-five young organists from twelve countries managed to qualify for the 2020 competition, which was held in cooperation with the mdw; they tested their mettle from 11 to 19 September 2020 at three churches in Vienna’s city centre.

Mina Yang’s statement “Beethoven and the Dangers of Hero Discourses”, delivered on 19 August 2020, initiated an animated and critical exchange on the various topics of the postponed isaScience conference, entitled “Heroes, Canons, Cults. Critical Inquiries”.