2020: The Year of Playing Telematically?

As the COVID-19 pandemic rages on, musicians of all stripes have repeatedly, whether in interviews, in casual conversation, or on social media, said the same thing: What they miss the most is playing with other people. That familiar refrain has led to the increasing currency—particularly in jazz circles—of an unfamiliar word. The word is “telematic,” and it offers something of a solution to the problem of social distance in music.

“Telematic music is where performers play together, live on the internet, with other musicians who