While 2020 presented numerous obstacles for arts organizations, Boulder Symphony managed to deliver several in-person performances.
Although the community-focused orchestra’s concert “True Love” didn’t go on as scheduled on Valentine’s Day weekend due to a spike in COVID cases, organizers and musicians have reconvened and set two new dates for Thursday at Boulder Theater.
“This will be a symphonic concert, the same great composers, the same great performers, with one exception — about half of the orchestra will be sitting this one out,” said Devin Patrick Hughes, conductor of Boulder Symphony. “The only performers this week are our string players and then our solo harpist, Hillary Schefter. This is for the safety of all participants, so we can ensure everyone will be masked and not playing particle-dispersing instruments — winds, brass, et cetera.”
The size of the audience is also reduced, with 100 attendees per concert allowed in the historic venue that pre-pandemic welcomed up to 850 people.
“While we will certainly miss half of our orchestra, they will be back soon and this strings-only orchestra arrangement has given us the opportunity to perform some amazing masterpieces that we would have never performed pre-pandemic,” Hughes said.
The passionate show will feature Claude Debussy’s “Danse sacrée et Danse profane,” “Adagietto” from Gustav Mahler’s “Symphony No. 5” and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s “Serenade for Strings.”
“We know that Tchaikovsky wrote the idea of love into music — think ‘Romeo & Juliet’ and ‘Swan Lake’ — better than almost any other composer and this is why this featured symphony is headlining ‘True Love,’” Hughes said.
Each carefully selected piece makes for an evening of pure virtuosity.
“Debussy was one of the most influential artists of the last 300 years,” Hughes said. “His music painted colors on a canvas, it allows the listener to feel, smell and taste the textures and harmonies. The very supple and ethereal ‘Danses’ features a harp on a tightrope, careening and caressing its way through the string orchestra. It will be an incredible opportunity to retune and retrain our senses and sensibilities after a long dark winter.”
Tickets for the 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. shows range from $40 to $65.
“Honestly, I am most excited to hear the audience’s applause when Devin (Hughes) walks onto the stage for the first time,” said Andrew Krimm, executive director of Boulder Symphony. “It is the moment when the orchestra comes together — after many hours of practice and rehearsal — as a team to create a special experience for the audience. It also is symbolic of all of the hard work it has taken to get through the past year as a community.”
All tickets are sold in tables of two, four or eight. Boulder Symphony has partnered with The Post Brewing Co. to offer attendees a meal option. This add-on is $48 for a group of four and includes eight pieces of gluten-free fried chicken, two large sides, four buttermilk cheddar biscuits and a round of Post beers.
“The thing I’m most looking forward to about Thursday’s shows is the opportunity to collaborate with fellow musicians to bring such beautiful music to life,” said harpist Hillary Schefter. “You don’t realize how much you rely on your colleagues in the orchestra to provide you with a sense of grounding and community until you don’t have the option to come together anymore. Twenty-twenty was the longest hiatus I’ve had from performing live with an orchestra since I was in my early teens, so it was a strange time, indeed.”
Pre-pandemic, much of Schefter’s days were spent playing a variety of events and weddings throughout the state. With COVID putting numerous in-person gatherings on hold, she luckily had options to fall back on.
She and her husband, Benjamin Todd, were able to bring their food truck into neighborhoods and apartment complexes during the summer to help offset the loss of income from Schefter’s gig work.
They have since parlayed their mobile eatery into a brick-and-mortar restaurant. Danger Zone Calzones — a fighter-jet themed restaurant inspired by Todd’s love of aviation — opened Jan. 4 at 32 N. Broadway, in Denver.
“The pandemic has certainly been interesting, as far as the food business goes,” Schefter said. “Thankfully, our idea — from even before the pandemic — was an emphasis on quick takeout service and being delivery heavy and that has certainly helped us through the last two months.”
In addition to being a skilled harpist and a restaurateur, Schefter is also an award-winning pole dancer and pole-dance instructor.
Upon first hearing the harp, as a child, she described the experience as “love at first sight and sound.”
“It’s a dramatic looking instrument for sure, which is fun,” Schefter said. “But my favorite part is the sound. The timbre of the instrument is just so different than anything else I’ve ever heard. It’s unique and versatile. It can be dark or playful, triumphant or extremely melancholic. And I love playing rolled chords and arpeggios, the sweeping lines are so suited to the instrument that arpeggio actually gets its name from the Italian word ‘arpeggiare,’ which means ‘to play on a harp’.”
Thursday’s shows kick off a series of Boulder Symphony performances at Boulder Theater. Future dates for the 11th season include “Ring In The Spring” on April 3, “Collage” on May 15 and “The Show Must Go On” on June 5.
As soon as Krimm was hired last June, he and Hughes brainstormed ways that they could provide live shows safely to fans and not rely on a solely virtual route to deliver entertainment.
“The Boulder Symphony Board, conductor Devin Patrick Hughes and I all thought it was important to keep live music alive throughout the pandemic,” Krimm said, noting that the group co-presented the Boulder Arts Outdoors Festival, the Takacs Quartet and the annual Curiosity Concerts. “Our mission is to connect with, and profoundly affect, the human spirit. We feel the best way to continue our mission is to provide a safe environment for our patrons and musicians to come together and enjoy in-person world-class art.”
Boulder Symphony is also partnering with Boulder’s Office of Arts and Culture and the city’s Parks and Recreation Department for an outdoor performance at the Boulder Bandshell in Central Park this summer, possibly on July 4.
“By far the most rewarding aspect has been finding ways to persevere and create live music experiences for our community,” Krimm said. “It has been incredible to speak with audience members after our events and see the joy in their eyes and that maybe for an hour they forgot about COVID.”
While fans remain loyal, Boulder Symphony is still feeling the economic hardship of not being able to throw full-capacity shows on a regular basis.
“The past 12 months have been extremely hard for everyone in our community and we at the Boulder Symphony are no different,” Krimm said. “We have seen a drop of 55% in revenue because of the pandemic. This drop is not only because of our reduced ticket sales, but also because the amazing companies that support us are also struggling. We have been forced to be creative in how we raise money.”
Currently, Boulder Symphony is hosting a virtual auction to generate much-needed funds. Close to 50 diverse items range from signed “Star Wars” memorabilia to gift cards to Shine, Niwot Tavern, Boulder Cork, Sushi Zanmai, 1914 House and other establishments.
Beatles enthusiasts have the opportunity to take home a framed record of “Abbey Road,” autographed by Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr.
There’s even an option to bid on a fly-fishing trip for two with concertmaster and guide Keynes Chen. A dinner personally prepared by conductor Hughes, with corresponding cocktails crafted by Krimm, is also up for grabs.
“It has been difficult running an arts organization during the pandemic, but I wouldn’t give it up for anything,” Krimm said. “The Boulder Symphony team is incredible and I can’t wait to see what the future holds.”
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