LiveShinesMusic in a New Light T

he experience of live classical music in El Paso is being illuminated by an innovative approach that casts concerts in a new light. Candlelight Concerts have been bringing intimate experiences to audiences across the world that now include El Paso. From Bach to the Beatles, Ed Sheeran to Shakespeare -- and more -- guests enjoy their favorite music lambent in the glow of hundreds of candles.

This month, two Candlelight Concerts will be hosted at St. Rogers Depot near downtown El Paso: a tribute to Taylor Swift on February 15th and Romeo and Juliet on February 16th.

The aim of Candlelight Concerts is to make classical music accessible to music lovers to democratize the experience by producing performances at visually stunning venues and locations. The concerts began in 2019 in cities like New York, Paris, and Madrid that focused on some of the most lauded composers such as Beethoven, Chopin, and Vivaldi. Producers sought to bring classical music closer to new audiences who they believed wouldn’t be interested, but are now proud to report that 70 percent of audience members are under the age of 40.

The City Magazine spoke with Candlelight Concert producers about what El Pasoans can anticipate.

What can El Pasoans expect from a Candlelight Concert?

Fever launched Candlelight concerts in El Paso in October 2022 because of the city’s developing arts, culture, and entertainment spaces. The development of these spaces aligned well with the mission of Candlelight Concerts, which is to democratize access to classical music while allowing people to discover unique venues that are part of the cultural heritage of cities and giving visibility to talented local artists in a unique atmosphere.

How does the light enhance the experience of live music?

Thousands of LED flameless candles are used to safely illuminate unique venues. This creates a serene atmosphere that enhances the listening experience of every guest.

What do you want readers to know about these special events?

Candlelight Concerts are a series of original music concerts created by Fever. Their aim is to democratize access to culture by allowing people from all over the world to enjoy live performances played by local musicians in various stunning locations illuminated by thousands of candles.

Candlelight was initially conceived as a classical music series with concerts featuring works from the greatest composers of all time like Vivaldi, Mozart, and Chopin. Now, the ever-growing list of programs includes a wide variety of themes and genres, including tributes to contemporary artists like Queen, ABBA, Coldplay, and Ed Sheeran, and shows dedicated to K-Pop, movie soundtracks, and many more.

The multi-sensory experience has also evolved to feature different elements, like ballet dancers and aerial performers, as well as other musical genres like jazz, soul, opera, flamenco, and more!

Candlelight Concerts are present in more than 100 cities worldwide, with over three million guests in attendance to date.

| By: MEGAN MEHL |

have to admit that a tumultuous decade of online dating has made me second guess everything about myself at some point. Why didn’t he like me? Why do I get ghosted? Why didn’t that great first date lead to a second? Why do men send unsolicited nude pics? (I’m mostly still searching for an answer to that last one, if anyone can help.)

My single friends and I have analyzed and overanalyzed these questions ad nauseam over the years. If you’re reading this and haven’t ever had the pleasure of dating on Tinder, you may find it a little hard to understand just how difficult it can be to form a genuine connection with someone in our current dating culture.

As a society, we’re obsessed with image. With social media playing an ever-broadening role in how we relate to one another and market ourselves, it only makes sense that dating has shifted to reflect this. The meteoric rise of dating apps in the social media age has given us license to indulge our baser human tendencies toward superficiality, judgment of others, and in many cases dishonesty. Take a minute to peruse any dating app, and you’ll see flawlessly airbrushed selfies, ridiculous Snapchat filters, photos that are 5+ years outdated, and everyone posing in their black tie finest.

Where’s the authenticity in that?

The antidote to this is an exercise in courage: embracing your individuality and unapologetically sharing it with others. In a world where we have the ability to carefully curate the perfect persona designed for the consumption of others, can you make the choice to be authentic instead, both online and offline? After all, there’s no hope for romance without vulnerability. This is a lesson I’ve learned the hard way, and I think it’s a big reason for the years I’ve spent single.

This fear of vulnerability isn’t limited to our online behavior. One thing I see over and over again with my clients is the tendency to walk into a date and suddenly morph into the kind of person they think will impress. We try to fit in, to play the part we think we have to – sexy, successful, adventurous, sophisticated, intelligent, sweet – fill in the blank. We peacock in an effort to distract from our thinly veiled insecurities and the deep fear that we’re not deserving of love.

But, guess what? We’re all deserving of love, and it starts with loving yourself.

I recently had a client admit that within the first few minutes of a blind date, the guy said that she didn’t seem very spontaneous. She spent the next three hours trying to convince him that she was fun, even though she wasn’t attracted to him and thought he was a jerk. The ego is a tricky thing. At the end of the day, there’s no point in trying to “win” your date. The person will find out eventually what you’re really like behind closed doors – ratty pajamas and all. It’s only a matter of time before the relationship perishes under an avalanche of well-intentioned white lies.

There are a few issues at play here. On the one hand, we are afraid of rejection – fearful that if our whole, true self is revealed that it will be cast aside and deemed not good enough. When the people we praise most as a society are Instagram models and cutthroat entrepreneurs, it’s hard not to internalize that and pull out the proverbial yardstick.

This current culture of dating also creates the illusion that the next best thing could be around the corner. It has made us seem almost instantly replaceable, and that further feeds the fear of rejection. So we laugh at jokes that aren’t funny. We listen to our date ramble on and on about themselves and don’t mention it when they don’t ask about us. We dwell on whether our date thought it was weird that we said that thing.

Our focus is in the wrong direction.

This happens in committed relationships, too. We all know someone who paired up and completely lost their identity. They now speak exclusively in “we” and don’t spend a moment away from their partner, abandoning their prior hobbies and friendships. Codependency aside, we all make concessions in a relationship and that’s part of what it means to build a life together.

But in those early, heady days of a relationship when you want nothing more than the love and validation of your partner, be aware of the little ways in which you abandon yourself: canceling your plans to hang with your partner, faking it, letting things slide when they make you upset. You may wake up one day in a long-term relationship with someone who doesn’t have a clue who you are. Or worse, you realize that you don’t have a clue who you are. Trust me, I’ve been there.

If you’re partnered, it’s perhaps even more difficult to remain true to yourself, especially as you both grow and change, then life intervenes. As unhappy as I was in my last relationship, it was daunting to think about returning to the dating pool. But what price do you pay when you stay in a relationship where you are a shell of yourself?

Can you take steps to re-acquaint your partner (and yourself) with the true version of you, or is it time to walk away? When you’ve built a life with someone, it can seem impossible to extricate yourself from it, especially if there are children involved. I have so much empathy for people who have been married for decades and are too scared to leave their spouse. Consider this your permission slip to explore the reason you’re still in the relationship, and if it’s in line with what you want.

Perhaps you don’t fit into the above scenarios and you’re the kind of person who leads with sex and prides themselves on never letting anyone get too close – you know who you are. I just have one question for you. Why? You, too, are worthy of love.

I have an avoidant attachment style, and I can totally relate to people who feel this is their only option for connection. I challenge you to examine the ways in which you avoid emotional intimacy out of self-protection.

Brenee Brown, a fantastic shame and vulnerability researcher, says “Imperfections are not inadequacies; they are reminders that we’re all in this together.” You have nothing to prove to anyone else, but you do have something to prove to yourself. Can you set your ego aside? Can you be real about who you are, what you’re looking for, and what you deserve? If this causes another person to run for the hills, they were never your person to begin with.

We all know this, but it bears repeating – any kind of personal growth is a lifelong journey, and it isn’t a straight line.

Vulnerability, in particular, is something that we have to learn over and over again in different contexts and different seasons of life. I believe that we come into this life with certain karma and lessons to learn, and this is undoubtedly one of mine.

In this season of romance, consider the ways that you show up for yourself in the context of dating and relationships. The most radical act of love is to love yourself as you are, and to be vulnerable enough to let others love that version of you, too.