The show goes on - online - for suburban symphonies
Suburban-based symphony orchestras could not perform as usual in 2020 due to the global coronavirus pandemic.
"Probably the hardest thing was the great unknown," New Philharmonic general manager Paula Cebula said of the abrupt lockdown in March. "Information was spotty and confusing. You didn't really know if maybe you could open in two or three months or longer at that point."
Once more details about COVID-19 and its transmission became better known, some orchestras endeavored to find socially distanced ways to make music together. For safety's sake, musicians performed outdoors or online - or both.
The New Philharmonic largely lucked out as the resident orchestra at College of DuPage's McAninch Arts Center in Glen Ellyn. The Lakeside Pavilion adjacent to the McAninch allowed the full orchestra to play outdoors in October with proper social distancing, some masks and specially crafted covers for brass and woodwind instruments to reduce emissions of respiratory aerosols.
Audiences weren't invited to watch in person. Yet, the college's film and video programs also allowed the New Philharmonic's first three originally planned season concerts (plus an added holiday singalong show) to be recorded, edited and subsequently released for virtual streaming on demand.
"It worked," exclaimed New Philharmonic artistic director Kirk Muspratt. "We did four sets of concerts without one person getting ill."
The Elgin Symphony Orchestra had to cancel most of its originally scheduled indoor concerts. So the organization crafted some live performances for limited-capacity audiences, which were also video recorded for other viewers to watch later at home.
Two September concerts led by departing Elgin Symphony music director Andrew Grams were held at Goebbert's Pumpkin Patch and Apple Orchard in Pingree Grove and The Haight in Elgin. There was also an indoor cabaret in November at Dream Hall at 51 in Elgin featuring poetry and a chamber contingent of musicians.
"Those were spectacular," Elgin Symphony Orchestra executive director Erik Malmquist said about the September concerts. "But we were sad that we could only have 100 people at one event and 50 at another."
The Chicago Sinfonietta turned to online-only concerts this season. Its first, titled "Common Ground: Collective Stories," was taped with social distancing precautions at North Central College's Wentz Concert Hall in Naperville. The October streamed concert notably featured a world premiere of "Portrait of a Peaceful Warrior" by composer and artist-in-residence Kathryn Bostic.
The Park Forest-based Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra has also been making its concerts available online. A summer outdoor chamber series allowed for a mix of live audiences of up to 50 people per performance, while the concerts were also streamed live via YouTube and Facebook.
And alongside concerts recorded for online audiences, the Illinois Philharmonic also teamed up with the filmmakers of the documentary "The Bowmakers" to stream it as a "Midwest Premiere" in November and early December.
"In this day when we can't do so many things, having a movie tied to classical music that was ready to go was something that we could plug into," said Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra executive director Christina Salerno. "We had a question-and-answer session after the Friday screening that included one of the filmmakers and our principal cellist Jacob Hanegan."
Throughout the pandemic, the Chicago Philharmonic has been streaming video archives of past performances. But they've also included online talkback sessions with soloists to reflect back on the times when audiences could congregate.
Small ensembles from the Chicago Philharmonic also performed outdoors in Skokie as part of the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts' warm-weather series of concerts held in its east parking lot.
The pandemic forced some orchestras to cancel all concerts. The financially troubled Lake Forest Symphony did not respond to an email seeking comment, and its website has switched to a private status.
Before the pandemic, the Park Ridge Civic Orchestra lost one of its major donors. The organization is now recalibrating its mission and name as the Discover Symphony.
While some of the orchestras' outdoor and online workarounds have provided some work for musicians, things are not anywhere near what they were like before the pandemic.
"Ticket revenue counts for about 30% of our annual budget, so that has almost completely dried up. Online content really doesn't make up for that," said Malmquist of the Elgin Symphony. "Fortunately, we've had a lot of donors who have stepped up to help us keep the doors open and the lights on. But the people who have really been hurt in this equation are the freelance musicians that make up our orchestras."
Symphonic Streaming Concerts On Demand
New Philharmonic: "Holiday Sing-Along with the Symphony" (available now through Jan. 3; $46.50 per household) and "New Year's Eve Concert" (available Dec. 31 through Jan. 3; $56.50 per household) and "The Music of John Williams" (available again through Jan. 4 to Feb. 28); "A Night of Broadway and Opera" (Jan. 23 to Feb. 28; $46.50 per household); via <a href="http://atthemac.org">atthemac.org</a>.
Chicago Symphony Orchestra: "Tower, Walker, Milhaud & Tchaikovsky" (available now through Jan. 1); "A Little Night Music with Dvorak, Mazzoli & Mozart" (available now through Jan. 8); "Home for the Holidays" (available through Jan. 15); $15 per stream; via <a href="http://cso.org/tv">cso.org/tv</a>.
Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra: "Joy! A Re-imagined Holiday" (available now through Dec. 31); "IPO Re-imagined: Coleman & Mozart" (available Jan. 23 to Feb. 12); $15 per stream; via <a href="http://ipomusic.org">ipomusic.org</a>.