{"id":2122,"date":"2019-05-21T08:11:25","date_gmt":"2019-05-21T12:11:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/?post_type=news&#038;p=2122"},"modified":"2020-10-04T13:41:31","modified_gmt":"2020-10-04T17:41:31","slug":"2122","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/news\/2122\/","title":{"rendered":"Finding Light: HT Coverage of our May 2019 Concert"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-asset-photo\" class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-card\">\n<h4><strong>Bloomington Symphony Orchestra Finds Light in the Darkness<\/strong><\/h4>\n<div class=\"card-meta\">\n<ul class=\"list-inline\">\n<li><span id=\"author-popup-ebc22690-ba9b-11e8-b18c-e30b0fef73b5-asset-15df85f4-4a04-53eb-a117-caa22fc73da5\" class=\"tnt-byline asset-byline\" title=\"\" data-original-title=\"\">By Jenny Porter Tilley The Herald-Times\u00a0<\/span><time class=\"tnt-date asset-date text-muted\" datetime=\"2019-05-20T16:30:00-04:00\">May 20, 2019\u00a0<\/time><span class=\"text-muted\">Updated\u00a0<\/span><time class=\"tnt-date asset-date text-muted\" datetime=\"2019-05-21T15:00:16-04:00\">May 21, 2019<\/time><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"2123\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/news\/2122\/chris-kabrick\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Chris-Kabrick.png?fit=1136%2C640&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1136,640\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Chris Kabrick\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Support the Orchestra&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Chris-Kabrick.png?fit=1024%2C577&amp;ssl=1\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-2123\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Chris-Kabrick-1024x577.png?resize=640%2C361\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"361\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Chris-Kabrick.png?resize=1024%2C577&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Chris-Kabrick.png?resize=300%2C169&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Chris-Kabrick.png?resize=768%2C433&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Chris-Kabrick.png?w=1136&amp;ssl=1 1136w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><br \/>\nThe Bloomington Symphony Orchestra performs by the light of cellphones Sunday at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater. (Chris Kabrick \/ Courtesy photo)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-share-container m_3620138035924612096gmail-content-above\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-asset-content m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-premium\">\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-preview\">\n<p>Just before 7 p.m. Sunday, the Buskirk-Chumley Theater was dark.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-preview\">\n<p>Backstage, Bloomington Symphony Orchestra\u2019s artistic director and Alejandro Gomez Guillen was warming up. For Sunday\u2019s concert, he was slated to perform the violin solo for Mozart\u2019s \u201cConcerto No. 4 in D major for Violin and Orchestra.\u201d He\u2019d prepared himself for the possibility of a storm or tornado warning, in case an announcement had to be given, but as the time for the group\u2019s final concert of the season neared, the power was still out.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>Parts of downtown were without power throughout the afternoon and evening due to trees and tree limbs falling on power lines and poles, according to a Duke Energy representative. Almost 300 customers in the Bloomington area were without power, some until early Monday morning, due to the need to move fallen branches before making repairs.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>Guillen, as well as the other musicians, BSO staff and board members and the Buskirk-Chumley Theater staff needed a plan. An idea found its way backstage, where Guillen still waited in the dressing room: What about using cellphones for light?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cI didn\u2019t even think twice,\u201d Guillen said. \u201cI was really worried about the audience waiting. We didn\u2019t know how long it was going to take to fix the power, and people might have to go home. The air conditioner was off. It was dark in there, and people might have felt unsafe in the dark.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>When he heard that there were still patrons who hadn\u2019t purchased their tickets in advance showing up for the concert, he said, \u201cit wasn\u2019t a question of whether to make it work, but how to make it work.\u201d The concert wouldn\u2019t be canceled or rescheduled, and wouldn\u2019t be delayed any longer than it had to be.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>Selling tickets would be difficult \u2014 there was no power for credit cards, and some people didn\u2019t have cash. Guillen said some audience members were let in for free, and several ended up making donations, \u201csome even more than the ticket was worth.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>Conditions weren\u2019t ideal, quick decisions had to be made and the show ran a little late.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cWhen people are willing to put up with some inconveniences and circumstances that are not ideal, it\u2019s really inspiring,\u201d said Molly Brush, a cellist in the orchestra. \u201cWe wanted to do our best for everyone who had come out to see us.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>Because the full orchestra wouldn\u2019t be on stage for the opening number, some members were sitting in the balcony when the power went out. Instead of sitting back and relaxing during the opening number, or preparing for their own parts later, they headed to the stage with their cellphones.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>Brush said she was able to see her music thanks to the light of clarinetist Carl Weinberg\u2019s flashlight app.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cHe just kind of crouched behind me the whole time,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>Guillen said it made him think of how the piece might have been originally performed in Mozart\u2019s time: by candlelight.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cAnd here we were with cellphones,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>In the audience, Sue Swaney, director of the Voces Novae chamber choir \u2014 of which Guillen is a member \u2014 was nervous for her colleague. She was afraid the problems leading up to his opening solo would be similar to an athlete being \u201ciced,\u201d when a timeout is called right before a play to divert the player\u2019s focus.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cHe was ready to go out and play a concerto, and all of a sudden he had to solve all of these problems,\u201d she said. \u201cBut he walked out there and gave a beautiful speech, and played that concerto very beautifully.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>Despite the initial obstacle, Brush said, the players found some benefits from their dark situation.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cPlaying in these difficult circumstances, without a lot of our normal visual cues, I think we were listening better and just being more alert and aware of each other.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>Intermission came after the Mozart piece, which would be followed by a new challenge. The venue was still dark, and Duke Energy was estimating power would be back by 1 a.m. A full orchestra would be needed on stage for the remainder of the performance. The next piece would be a local premiere of music composed by Leigha Amick, a student at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cThere was a sense from the orchestra that they were game,\u201d Swaney said. \u201cThey just wanted to play.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>With 40 minutes of music left in the program, Guillen announced that they would make a decision shortly after 8 p.m. as to whether the show would go on.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cAt that point, we were wondering, \u2018Is the power going to come back on anytime soon?\u2019\u201d Brush said. \u201c\u2019Are people really going to stick around and sit in the dark in what was getting pretty warm without the air conditioner?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>Yes, they really were.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>Without fellow musicians to light up the music and the conductor, the orchestra quickly used gaffer tape and whatever else they could find to rig their cellphones to light their music.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cSomebody went to the very back of the stage with a flashlight to illuminate my face and body so the orchestra could see me,\u201d Guillen said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>Despite still not having all of the resources needed to host a concert, the orchestra continued with Modest Mussorgsky\u2019s \u201cPictures at an Exhibition.\u201d By this point, the men in the orchestra had removed their coats in the hot, muggy theater. The audience wasn\u2019t giving up.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cI told the audience, \u2018We\u2019re going to do this,\u2019\u201d and everybody cheered,\u201d Guillen said. \u201cAt that moment, boom! There was a little flicker. Everyone gasped.\u201d The stage was still dark, but the house lights came on, and the air conditioner, too.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>By the final piece of the Mussorgsky suite, the stage lights had kicked in.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cIt was such a community experience and just amazing to feel the support of everyone, to feel that everyone wanted us to do it,\u201d Guillen said. \u201cWe just kept asking, \u2018Hey, don\u2019t give up on us.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>Brush said she didn\u2019t hear anyone complaining or suggesting they cancel and go home.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>\u201cEveryone was just like, \u2018How can we make this happen?\u2019\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-subscriber-only\">\n<p>Only cellphone footage of the performance exists, as Community Access Television Services had no power to record. Swaney, who attended the concert \u2014 the last in the orchestra\u2019s 49th season \u2014 with her husband, said it\u2019s one they\u2019ll never forget.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_3620138035924612096gmail-asset-tagline m_3620138035924612096gmail-text-muted\">\n<p>Contact Jenny Porter Tilley at 812-331-4377, <a href=\"mailto:jtilley@heraldt.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">jtilley@heraldt.com<\/a> or follow @jennylynne on Twitter.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Bloomington Symphony Orchestra Finds Light in the Darkness By Jenny Porter Tilley The Herald-Times\u00a0May 20, 2019\u00a0Updated\u00a0May 21, 2019 The Bloomington Symphony Orchestra performs by the light of cellphones Sunday at&hellip;&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"","neve_meta_content_width":0,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"tags":[],"news-category":[],"class_list":["post-2122","news","type-news","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/2122","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2122"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/2122\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2124,"href":"https:\/\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/2122\/revisions\/2124"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2122"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2122"},{"taxonomy":"news-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bloomingtonsymphony.com\/staging\/6573\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-category?post=2122"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}