We’re baaaaack! Our blog was sent to its room for awhile because it wasn’t behaving (formatting issues…), but we’re back, better than ever! Be sure to check the blog frequently for BPO and orchestra industry news, spotlights on our guest artists, musicians, staff, board and volunteers, behind-the-scenes glimpses, photos and videos, games, puzzles, and trivia, and more! We promise to keep the content newsworthy, fun, interesting, and exciting — never a dull moment!
So, what’s the BPO up to anyway?
Suddenly and without much notice at all, the carpet was pulled out from under us this spring. We haven’t been able to convene for rehearsals or concerts since mid-March. We remain committed to the health and safety of our musicians and our audience, and we continue to follow government guidelines until we can re-open again. The BPO administrative staff now works from home, and our musicians are at home as well, keeping their skills sharp by practicing like crazy and producing fun audio projects for all of us to enjoy. We all keep in touch constantly via Zoom calls, and have swiftly become our own media company, working on loads of audio and video content, including our weekly broadcasts of archived live concert recordings each Tuesday evening on WNED Classical, and even a fun coloring book for all ages, all gifts for you, our cherished patrons. We continue to brainstorm and create, so be on the lookout for some exciting new surprises coming your way soon!
So, what’s next? The board, staff, and musicians continue to work together to plan for every scenario. If we’re able to re-open tomorrow, we’ve got a plan for that. Or, if it’s some time before we can come back together to create beautiful music, that’s a total bummer, but we’ve got several plans in the works for that scenario as well. It takes teams of people to put together these performances, no matter the ensemble or audience size — our beloved musicians, our guest artists and their management teams, the music publishers, our librarians who prepare the thousands of pieces of music we play, the concert production team that makes all the moving parts work together, the marketing team that keeps you well informed, the sales and box office teams that provide white glove service for all of our patrons, the development team that ensures our healthy and successful future, the education team that is busy building the audiences of tomorrow, the finance team that makes sure the numbers all work… It truly takes a village, and we’re all working hard so that we’re ready to come back in whatever way, shape or form as soon as we possibly can.
No matter what the future holds, there are two things we can promise: 1.) we will continue to make beautiful music for you, and 2.) your health and safety is our #1 priority. Thank you for standing by us through thick and thin, Western New York!