They also need to decide, in an elitist mindset, not to bother with the illusion of mass audience. In the 21st century, the mass audience flocks to rock concerts, celebrity stakeouts and McDonald's. Classical music is not mainstream culture. It is one of a myriad of micro-cultures and it needs to be marketed and targeted in ways that are just starting to be developed online.

I could give numerous examples; space confines me to one. A Ukrainian pianist, Valentina Lisitsa, unable to get a date in Carnegie Hall, set up video cameras in her Texas studio and filmed herself playing Chopin, Rachmaninov and Beethoven. She then posted the results on YouTube. This summer I noticed she had almost two million views on some pieces, outstripping Lang Lang and Hélène Grimaud many times over. Lisitsa is fast becoming a cult figure. After I wrote about her status, the Royal Albert Hall booked her for a solo recital before the London Olympics. By the time you read this, she will have a major label contract and a mainstream career.

 The online bonus is that classical music need no longer live within walls of concert halls and corsets of state rules. The cuts in arts budgets represent an empowering opportunity. 

Some ensembles may die — but only from an excess of caution. Those that seize the moment to reclaim creative independence will emerge from the economic downturn far stronger, more diverse and more versatile than they ever dared to dream of before. Music, in this world crisis, has nothing to lose but its chains.