Music Director Francesco Lecce-Chong and 24 Eugene Symphony musicians record a program in high-definition video and audio at the Hult Center. Photo by Amanda Smith
“The last time Eugene Symphony performed at the Hult Center, it was Feb. 23—2020,” writes Henry Houston in Thursday’s (3/4) Eugene Weekly (OR). “Then COVID-19 changed everything. Now the Eugene Symphony has returned to the Hult Center stage for a virtual performance, using the Hult’s new cameras purchased with state arts funding made available from the CARES Act to record the concert. With the new equipment, the upcoming symphony concert is the first of upcoming streamable performances from the Hult’s two stages. Hult Center General Manager Theresa Sizemore says … the venue used the [pandemic] downtime as an opportunity to make some enhancements … Because the Hult is owned and operated by the city of Eugene, when it was awarded money from the CARES Act, the money could only be used to buy PPE-related material and to cover business recovery costs, such as cameras to help bring people back to the stage.… On Feb. 18, the orchestra recorded a concert … available to stream starting March 4.” Executive Director Scott Freck says, “There’s nothing like the magic of talented and trained musicians doing their thing together…. All they had to do was tune and I was tearing up.’ ”
