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Tim Bendzko performs at all three “concerts” to make the events more authentic, said organizers
Three pop concerts are held in one day in Germany to enable scientists to investigate the risks of such mass indoor events during the pandemic.
Some 4,000 healthy volunteers between the ages of 18 and 50 were asked to sign up for Saturday’s study in Leipzig, conducted by Halle University.
Singer-songwriter Tim Bendzko has agreed to perform at all three consecutive performances.
The study came when Germany registered its highest number of Covid-19 infections since the end of April.
More than 2,000 cases were recorded in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of cases to 232,082, the Robert Koch Institute reported.
The concert study, called Restart-19, was created “to investigate the conditions under which such events could be conducted despite the pandemic,” researchers said.
Scientists plan to run three different scenarios with about 4,000 visitors at the Quarterback Immobilien Arena in Leipzig over the course of Saturday.
The first aims to simulate an event for the pandemic; the second with greater hygiene and some social distance; and the third with half of the figures and with each person standing 1.5 m apart.
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Concertgoers wore protective face masks for the study
Each staged scenario includes the arrival and departure of the stadium and performances by Tim Bendzko “to depict spectator behavior as realistically as possible.”
All participants are tested for Covid-19, and are given face masks and tracking devices to measure their distance. Exactly how many volunteers came forward to participate remains unclear.
Researchers use fluorescent disinfectants to track which surfaces touch members of the public the most, and also report controlling aerosol particles that exhale and float in the air – a possible mode of transmission for the virus.
The project received 990,000 euros (£ 892,000, $ 1.17m) funding from the states of Saxony-Anhalt and Saxony with the aim of helping to build the way for the reimbursement of major indoor sports and music events by achieving realistic levels of risk .
“The corona pandemic is paralyzing the events sector,” Saxony-Anhalt Minister for Economy and Science Prof Armin Willingmann said before the event.
“As long as there is a risk of infection, large concerts, fairs and sporting events cannot take place. This is why it is so important to find out what technical and organizational circumstances can effectively minimize the risks.”
