STILL MAKING MUSIC DURING COVID JASON SAVIO With the closure of performance venues due to COVID-19 over the last year, it has been a trying time for many local musicians who take pride in working a consistent schedule of shows. The recent implementation of the state’s Phase IV COVID guideline is allowing some light to shine through with the potential for more gigs, but the pandemic’s punch still leaves musician’s reeling. So how did Worcester’s musicians handle the unexpected change of pace? As always, the working spirit and never-say-quit attitude have been at the forefront. Here’s a look at how some WooTown musicians turned to their craft and looked inward over the past 12 months to find solace.
GIULIANO D’ORAZIO Giuliano D’Orazio isn’t used to having idle time. “I’m usually pretty busy,” says the guitarist and singer. “I was doing two to four gigs a week [before the pandemic].” Prior to COVID-19, D’Orazio could be found on a regular basis playing solo acoustic shows at BirchTree Bread Company, Nicks, and Vincent’s. He’s also a member of the currently inactive Hot Letter, does duo performances with his partner Joshua Croke as Wildcard Characters, and also plays with Hot Letter guitarist Matt Sivazlian.
Tyler Ironside (Giuliano in 2019)
D’Orazio had shows booked out until June, but of course none of those happened. He hasn’t played in front of a live audience since having to cancel his March 13, 2020 show at Nicks. He estimates that he’s had over 100 gigs canceled because of COVID.
“It wasn’t so much panic as much as ‘what’s next?’” he says. “There were a few weeks there where it was pretty hairy.”
“(That’s) definitely something we wouldn’t have done if it had been in the regular world,” he says.
D’Orazio’s initial response was to do what many other musicians found themselves doing: streaming performances on their social media accounts from their own homes and accepting tips from virtual listeners via Venmo. He and Croke created an online show called Live Stream Local, which they intended to use to invite other artists on until they realized it wasn’t safe to have them physically in their space. D’Orazio carried on with it by himself and did well off of tips from viewers.
D’Orazio had what he calls an “artist getaway” during the summer, spending time on Cape Cod to write and record music. A song from that trip, “Take Me Higher,” can now be heard on Spotify under his Wildcard Characters moniker.
“I was able to take home in just Venmo tips probably more than I would have in three or more playing-out gigs,” he says, noting that he also had more viewers than he would at a single venue. “People were very sensitive to my struggle and that of other artists and wanted to help out, so that was pretty cool.” D’Orazio says he only streamed performances “three or four times in March/ April.” Although he describes himself as “old school about performing,” D’Orazio did find that playing virtually to people provided a nice surprise. “I so much prefer live music for so many different reasons, but one of the things I did enjoy was complete silence,” he says. “Performing more intimate renditions of things because there’s no din in the room that you’re trying to play over. That was a neat opportunity to have these more intimate sessions.” The virtual landscape also provided D’Orazio an opportunity to host a virtual album release party for Wachusett Sessions, a collection of unreleased work Hot Letter recorded in 2018. 6 A PRIL 20 21
Eventually, not having what would normally be a “super busy” summer of gigging caught up to D’Orazio. “A combination of not gigging and other isolation things caused my personal mental health stuff to catch up with me,” he says. “I had mental health struggles because I think as a musician and a performer, I wasn’t out there sharing energy and absorbing energy with folks, so that was really tough.” With the help of friends and doctors, D’Orazio says he is better now and has found a burst of creativity, clocking “9 to 5 workdays” writing and recording his own music. He says he has had an epiphany of sorts and has a renewed focus on creating original solo music as opposed to just performing covers when the pandemic ends. He has never released anything under just his own name, and that’s what he is working on now. “By the fall I was like ‘alright, you’re going to be a musician when this pandemic ends. How do you want to use this time? Are you going to just keep doing a lot of cover gigs in Worcester?’” he says. “I’m not knocking it, but ‘Are you going to be an entertainer, or do you have something to say as an artist?’”
