LIVE FROM THE RECITAL HALL

In March of this year, like so many other university departments and performance venues, the UTSA Department of

Music was forced to cancel a full calendar of events as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic. The 500-seat

Recital Hall fell quiet and dark for months. With no end in sight and social distancing becoming the norm, the music faculty had to find a way to offer the student musicians opportunities to perform without compromising their health.

With support from music chair Dr. Tracy Cowden and university administration, audio technology lecturer Vinnie Barrera implemented a livestream system in the Recital Hall just in time for the fall semester. He worked with a limited budget and against a relentless clock to put a 4-camera system in place in time for the first livestreaming event caused by the quarantine. “This year, pre-quarantine, the proposal of adding cameras was suggested. Adding these cameras would allow the music program to connect to a bigger audience and also allow the music department to have a greater online presence,” says Barrera. “We need them now more than ever with social distancing regulations and the majority of class being held online.”

On October 1st, the students in the UTSA Percussion Ensemble, under the direction of Sherry Rubins, will be the first ensemble to perform in a livestream setting. The ensemble will consist of new and returning members, and Rubins believes the excitement of being able to play together after not being able to for the past several months is all the motivation they need.

“I couldn’t be more proud of the way the students (5 new and 8 returning) are adapting to playing with masks, wiping

down instruments/mallets, and just working hard to perform at a very high level,” says Rubins. “I think they were so ready to make music and be in the same room as other humans that they fell right into ‘let’s get this done’ mode.”

The rules of social distancing are also affecting the type of music the ensembles will be performing. Troy Peters, conductor of the UTSA Orchestra, is currently rehearsing for an October 9th livestream concert. It is the first of two this semester; the second is slated for November 23rd. He describes how programming a performance for a group of less than 20 musicians differs from a program for over 50.

“The big difference for the UTSA Orchestra this semester is the shift to a strings-only group,” says

Peters. Masking woodwind and brass instrumentalists is not a realistic option so those musicians will be missing from the program. “This challenge gives us an opportunity to explore lots of great string orchestra repertoire that we don’t perform as frequently when we have other instruments in the ensemble,” he explains.

The Orchestra and Percussion Ensemble are only two of a handful of student ensembles meeting on campus for in-person rehearsals this semester; the UTSA Mariachi Los Paisanos is one and the Jazz Combo another. At this time, there are no planned concerts for the latter two ensembles, but just spending time making music together has had its own advantages. “After six months of not being able to play live with other musicians, the chance to make music together is thrilling,” states Peters. “Many [of us] have teared up more than once.”

The Percussion Ensemble will be performing music written by new percussion faculty member, Paul Millette, and woman composer/player, Andrea Venet. The Orchestra will perform Grieg’s Holberg Suite and Mozart’s F major Divertimento, as well as great music by Mexican-American composer José Elizondo and Black English composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. “We are excited that audiences will still be able to connect with the live element in a performance like this,” says Peters of his concerts. “Those who tune in for the initial live stream will feel the energy of an orchestra on stage together at that very moment, even though they

The UTSA Percussion concert will be held at 5 pm on October 1st. The livestream will be viewable through the Department’s Facebook page. The Orchestra will livestream its performance at 12:30 pm. All events will be uploaded to the Department’s YouTube channel following the live

transmissions.

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