--- title: The Story of the Kids' Concert for a Self-Quarantined Neighbor description: Two kids in Columbus, Ohio, performed a cello concert for their 78-year-old neighbor who was self-isolating as a precaution. canonical: https://time.com/5804742/kids-cello-coronavirus-video/ author: Rachel E. Greenspan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2020-03-17T18:47:50.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T04:45:59.655Z og:title: Here's the Story Behind That Viral Video of Kids Playing a Private Cello Concert for Their Self-Quarantined Neighbor og:description: 'We’re just trying to rethink what it means to be home in a positive way' og:url: https://time.com/5804742/kids-cello-coronavirus-video/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdce4dc3f4afea6da/698a0ba5656a3ffdc6bd9d2c/cello-coronavirus.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5760 og:image:height: 3240 og:image:alt: Two Kids Played Cello for Their Self-Isolated Neighbor og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Here's the Story Behind That Viral Video of Kids Playing a Private Cello Concert for Their Self-Quarantined Neighbor twitter:description: 'We’re just trying to rethink what it means to be home in a positive way' twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdce4dc3f4afea6da/698a0ba5656a3ffdc6bd9d2c/cello-coronavirus.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Here's the Story Behind That Viral Video of Kids Playing a Private Cello Concert for Their Self-Quarantining Neighbor > Sponsored content. 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It curates the day's top headlines with TIME's reporting and analysis across politics, world affairs, business, health and culture. It is free to join at time.com/newsletters. #### How do I sign up for The Brief? The Brief is available free at time.com/newsletters, where readers can select it along with any of TIME's other six newsletters. There is no subscription required to receive it. #### Is The Brief free? Yes. The Brief is a free daily email newsletter from TIME. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes The Brief? The Brief is led by editor Richard Hall and draws on reporting from TIME's newsroom. Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically. by [Rachel E. Greenspan](https://time.com/author/rachel-e-greenspan/) ## Rachel E. Greenspan Mar 17, 2020 6:47 PM UTC  Two kids play cello for their self-isolated elderly neighbor in Columbus, Ohio, on March 16. Two kids play cello for their self-isolated elderly neighbor in Columbus, Ohio, on March 16. Rebecca Tien by [Rachel E. Greenspan](https://time.com/author/rachel-e-greenspan/) ## Rachel E. Greenspan Mar 17, 2020 6:47 PM UTC As epidemiologists and leaders worldwide ask people to [socially distance](https://time.com/5800442/social-distancing-coronavirus/) themselves to help curb the[ spread of the coronavirus pandemic](https://time.com/5797836/coronavirus-racism-stereotypes-attacks/), communities everywhere are finding small ways to [support each other remotely](https://time.com/5801882/coronavirus-spatial-remote-work/). And one heartwarming viral video shared on Monday shows how two kids in Columbus, Ohio, brought an orchestral concert to their 78-year-old neighbor’s doorstep as she [self-quarantined as a precaution](https://time.com/5803980/coronavirus-ethics/). Taran Tien, 9, wore a suit and his sister, Calliope Tien, 6, wore bright pink for their big performance on Helena Schlam’s porch, sitting many feet away from their neighbor. > [](https://twitter.com/JMBorchardt/status/1239587326084423682) Taran and Calliope had spent the weekend playing cello via FaceTime for family and friends as an assignment from their cello instructor, in order to keep up with their practice amid COVID-19 social distancing, according to their mother, Rebecca Tien. Tien called her elderly neighbor, Helena Schlam, on Sunday, offering to pick up groceries, but then she had an even better idea: a private cello concert. The neighbors planned the performance of music from the Suzuki Cello books for Monday at 12 p.m. for a very special reason. Schlam would FaceTime her grandchildren in Israel — who won’t come for their typical springtime visit due to the pandemic — to perform for them, too. “So my children were not only giving a concert for Helena, but also for her grandchildren in Israel,” Tien said. Tien said that while she and her husband both work remotely and their two kids are home from school, they’re looking for ways to make daily life more fun and exciting. “We’re just trying to rethink what it means to be home in a positive way: that we get to spend time together, that we get to learn things we don’t always have time to do,” she said.  Rebecca Tien But on a more personal level, Tien said it was important for her to be able to be there for Schlam right now. Tien’s own mother underwent surgery in upstate New York on Tuesday morning, and because of coronavirus fears, she couldn’t be with her. “I didn’t want to put her at risk and I was feeling sad that I couldn’t travel,” she said. “So this felt like a way that I could connect to someone and help in a way that made me feel better about maybe feeling a little helpless that I couldn’t go be with my mom today.” When another neighbor, Jackie Borchardt, shared a video of the performance on Twitter, Tien said she was “overwhelmed” by the positive responses from people all over the world. The video has more than 500,000 views as of Tuesday afternoon. “I do think there’s a value in a story that moves people,” said Tien, who works as a freelance photographer. “It was just a private event to make one person happy, but I really do see the value of making lots of people happy. 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