As you may have noticed, the SWF hasn't hosted a lecture in a long time, and the few that were scheduled over a year ago had to be cancelled.
There are several reasons for this. First and foremost, the death of Sami Habra, our keynote speaker for almost fifty years, has deprived us of an exceptional speaker and a number of lecture topics. The COVID has also come and gone, and the problem of finding a venue in the Paris region at an affordable price is another reason. But the main reason is undoubtedly the present time. Fewer and fewer members were coming to these meetings, and the reproach of "Parisianism" was recurrent.
The transition to digital technology, which began 7 years ago, is a wonderful opportunity to provide lectures for as many people as possible. We recently presented a video on Bruckner's 8th Symphony. We will be renewing and developing this approach, whether by interviewing a well-known figure or organising a round-table discussion.
The end of face-to-face lectures? Not necessarily, if the right opportunity comes along.
In any case, it marks the end of a systematism, and the birth of a new sharing tool.
The main amphiteatre of the Sorbonne