“Two years ago, Tony- and Grammy-winning Hamilton star Leslie Odom Jr. teamed with the ProMusica Chamber Orchestra for a fundraising concert at the Southern Theatre,” writes Peter Tonguette in Saturday’s (4/25) Columbus Dispatch (OH). “The experience proved memorable not only for the orchestra but—apparently—for the star of the show, too. Last weekend, as Odom was in the midst of preparations to perform at the conclusion of the NFL Draft on Saturday, his manager contacted ProMusica with an unusual request: Could the orchestra record music to go along with the vocalist’s singing? ‘In what other lifetime would ProMusica and NFL come together?’ said [ProMusica] Chief Executive Officer Janet Chen, who agreed to undertake the orchestra’s first-ever virtual performance. To accompany Odom, six ProMusica instrumentalists recorded parts remotely: violist Brett Allen and French horn player Stephanie Blaha—both Ohio residents—along with violist Stephen Goist of New York City; concertmaster Katherine McLin of Phoenix; cellist Marc Moskovitz of Raleigh, North Carolina; and violinist Jennifer Ross of Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The final result [was] broadcast Saturday afternoon on ABC, ESPN and NFL Network…. ‘I’ve never watched the NFL draft before, but I will [Saturday],’ Chen said.”
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