Back Together And Blown Away: The Boston Symphony Orchestra Returns To Tanglewood

The Boston Symphony Orchestra recently returned to its storied summer home, Tanglewood, after the pandemic canceled last season. With reopening comes normalcy, as well as an opportunity for growth.

Transcript

A MARTINEZ, HOST:

Pandemic shut down most summer music festivals last year, and Tanglewood, the home of Boston Symphony Orchestra in the Berkshire Mountains of Massachusetts, was no exception. But on July 10, the music center came back to life, and reporter Jeff Lunden was there.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: Is this your first concert?

JEFF LUNDEN, BYLINE: In many respects, it seemed as though nothing had changed. The lawn outside the Shed, where the Boston Symphony plays, was filled with concertgoers spread out on blankets and eating picnics, like Victoria Cersosimo, who had driven all the way from Maine.

VICTORIA CERSOSIMO: About eight hours in the car today. We love music, and we also love being outside. You know, I've sat under the pavilion, and I just prefer the blankets on the lawn, my feet in the grass.

LUNDEN: And she added...

CERSOSIMO: I come every year, except last year. It was really sad. I usually come for the all-Beethoven program.

LUNDEN: Which is exactly what the Boston Symphony chose to play for its first concert back.

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LUNDEN: Last summer, Tanglewood was something of a ghost town. Visitors were allowed to walk on the grounds with beautiful views of the surrounding mountains, but the center, typically abuzz with concerts, classes and rehearsals, was unusually quiet, says Lawrence Wolfe (ph), assistant principal bass in the orchestra.

LAWRENCE WOLFE: No live performances, no audiences - no nothing. It was heartbreaking.

LUNDEN: The BSO eventually gave online offerings last summer and throughout the pandemic. Wolfe says the musicians got frequent COVID tests, wore masks and sat distanced from one another.

WOLFE: We did what we set out to do - remain relevant, remain in your ears, remain in your eyes and remind you just how good we are.

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LUNDEN: But now audiences can experience the orchestra - and soloists like Emanuel Ax - in person again. Tanglewood is open to 50% capacity, approximately 9,000 people, which means there's some distancing in the Shed and room to spread out on the lawn, where those who are vaccinated aren't required to wear masks; the same with the orchestra, says music director Andris Nelsons.

ANDRIS NELSONS: The orchestra is fully vaccinated, so we sit on the stage together with practically no distance anymore.

LUNDEN: And students, the Tanglewood Fellows, have returned after meeting via Zoom last summer.

MAGGIE COX: I've only played with people once since March 2020. And it was, like, a very small ensemble, and everyone still wore masks.

LUNDEN: Maggie Cox is a bass player. Not only did she do her fellowship online last summer, she also did her first year as a graduate student at the Curtis Institute virtually. So she says being with other young musicians has been a godsend.

COX: What you want to do is play with people; you don't want to, like, record iPhone videos (laughter) and, like, upload them to the cloud. I think a lot of people have had the experience of just feeling, like, really relieved. And I think a lot of people felt burnt out, and it's been really comforting to get back in shape so quickly.

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LUNDEN: Many arts organizations have come out of the pandemic thinking about calls for social justice, diversity and accessibility. The BSO is engaging in outreach efforts this summer. For example, there was a "Tanglewood In The City" concert screening in the local community of Pittsfield last weekend. Gail Samuel, the BSO's new president and CEO, says it's an opportunity to...

GAIL SAMUEL: Invite the local audiences to come outside of Tanglewood, really close to home. So I think there are definitely efforts to connect. And I think that's the question - is what do those add up to? And are we serving the community in a way that makes sense for them, not only for us?

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LUNDEN: Meanwhile, music director Andris Nelsons is thrilled to be rehearsing and performing with the Boston Symphony again.

NELSONS: After this 1 1/2 years of experiencing orchestra, performing without masks and without distance, it was just - oh, I was so blown away. I was just - and the goosebumps listening to the orchestra - oh, my God, it's such an amazing orchestra. It reminded how greatly we need to cherish things we have in this life.

LUNDEN: For NPR News, I'm Jeff Lunden in Lenox, Mass. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.