Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra goes virtual in spreading some Joy!
There currently are no audiences attending Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra concerts at Trinity Christian College’s Ozinga Chapel in Palos Heights due to COVID-19 restrictions, but people can see shows performed there.
The Park Forest-based group, which was named 2020 Professional Orchestra of the Year by Illinois Council of Orchestras, follows up an Oct. 24 virtual opening night concert for a reimagined 43rd season with Joy! A Reimagined Holiday, streaming Dec. 12-31.
“As the pandemic started there were a lot of challenges but we also saw this as an opportunity for us to reinvent ourselves. It started back in summer when we started presenting chamber music concerts when it was safe to do so,” said Stilian Kirov, music director of Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra.
“These were socially distanced, digitally broadcast and not too long. We had a limit on timing. We thought, ‘It’s our mission as musicians to bring music to people.’ We also saw it as an opportunity to expand on equity, diversity and inclusion.
“We performed George Walker’s ‘Lyric for Strings’ in October. We recorded a piece by Valerie Coleman for our January woodwind performance. Every concert has this equity, diversity and inclusion element in it. I’m hopeful that this will become stronger and stronger.”
Joy! A Reimagined Holiday features 23 performers.
“For the orchestral performances we had the challenge of involving all the musicians. Our first concert in October had strings only but we also wanted to provide opportunities for woodwinds and brass and percussion,” said Kirov, of Sarasota, Florida.
“Our holiday concert will be a brass and percussion concert. We thought it would be a great way to kick off the holiday season. This program includes two great arrangements by John Mindeman. These are ‘Joy!’ and ‘Ding Dong Merrily/Good King Wenceslas.’
“Then there’s ‘The Nutcracker
Suite’ by Duke Ellington. Actually that is quite exciting. It’s a jazzy version of ‘The Nutcracker.’ “
Ellington’s “The Nutcracker Suite” is from his 1960 album of the same name, which features interpretations of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s score for the ballet “The Nutcracker.”
Mindeman is associate professor of trombone and euphonium at Western Illinois University in Macomb.
“We’re very happy as well for our woodwind concert. This will be broadcasted from Jan. 23-Feb. 12, 2021. It’s Mozart’s ‘Gran Partita,’ a very famous piece and a great masterpiece,” said Kirov about Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Serenade No. 10.
“Also, this is the program where we are going to hear Valerie Coleman’s ‘Red Clay & Mississippi Delta’ This is the kind of work that combines traditional musical scherzo with living in the South so it’s a really great piece.
“We are grateful to be able to play but it also means the world to us if people are able to witness what we have done and watch these concerts online.”
Tickets for Joy! A Reimagined Holiday and Coleman & Mozart are $15 each or $25 for both concerts.
The programs were filmed at Trinity Christian College’s Ozinga Chapel, where Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra last welcomed an audience on Feb. 8 for All Tchaikovsky because March, April and May concerts were canceled when efforts to curb the spread of the coronavirus began.
“We cannot have all the musicians on stage right now but we can come up with a creative program that can involve them separately so we always have the number of musicians that is within guidelines. They maintain social distancing on stage. We do temperature checks,” Kirov said.
“When it comes to woodwinds and brass they have special coverings on their bells. They also wear masks when they’re not playing. These are special masks where you insert the instruments.
“We also were very mindful of the air. After every 50 minutes we would take a 30-minute break to make sure the air settled and then we would come back. There were a lot of elements in place but, in the end, I’m very happy because we managed to keep everyone safe and do these shows that will be broadcast.”
Classical music fans also may want to check out International Music Foundation’s free virtual Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concerts presentation of
Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra String Quartet broadcast live from the Chicago Cultural Center at 12:15 p.m. Jan. 6, 2021, at imfchicago.org or on WFMT-FM (98.7).
First violinist Azusa Tashiro, second violinist Elizabeth Huffman, violist Amanda Grimm and cellist Jacob Hanegan perform “Langsamer Satz” by Anton Webern and String Quartet No. 2 in A Minor by Florence Price.