Anne-Sophie Mutter has tested positive for coronavirus. The acclaimed German violinist revealed her diagnosis in an honest and straight-shooting video captioned “COVID-19” and posted on her Facebook page.

“Know that I am with you in spirit, but know that I am also with you in the COVID-19 because I have been tested positive,” she says, while simultaneously apologising for the untidiness of her office. “So, I am staying very quarantined, in quarantine at home, and I am expecting to fully recover.”

She also took the opportunity to explain some of the mental travail that accompanies the diagnosis and had some words of advice for her admirers. “It’s interesting what it does with your head,” she explains. “At first I thought this is a total disaster – and, yes, in some tragic cases it is really a difficult situation – but in my case I am 56 and not smoking. So, the smokers among my fans, you should really consider stopping now.”

Mutter is the latest high-profile COVID-19 case to hit the classical music world following Plácido Domingo, who revealed he...