ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic was accompanied by the emergence of novel repertoires and a number of music practices targeting confinement and social distancing. This chapter develops a typology of these forms of musicking and seeks to explain their forms and functions using concepts from music sociology, most importantly, the concept of Umgangsmusik. Further, it draws on research from cultural history and music psychology to claim that the key function of these practices can be described as mediatised consolation of self and others.
