Four days earlier, Hurricane Isaias had ripped through Westport. Much of the town was without power.
But a pair of 10-year-olds — Isabella and Alexander Mariani — and their musician friends were undaunted.
After being home for several months, with recitals and concerts canceled by COVID-19, they’d planned a small, socially distanced live concert.
This was not just about them and their parents, either. They were raising money for the Connecticut Food Bank.
Their mom — Carole Chinn Mariani — had called friends she met through the Suzuki Music School of Westport, when Isabella and Alexander had started playing violin and piano.
Bottom row (from left): Owen and Charlotte Naughton, Madeleine and Maria Stiber. Top: Sage and Hugh Kramer, Alexander and Isabella Mariani, Jade and Grant Zimmerman.
(Photo/Carole Chinn Mariani)
Seven of the 10 children are still with Suzuki. The program often tells students, “you should practice every day you eat.”
Especially today, that saying reminds them how fortunate they are to worry only about practicing music, not where their next meal is coming from.
So they decided that the “Make Music Feed” show must go on.
Due to the pandemic, performers and attendees were limited to 5 families, spaced 6 feet apart on the Marianis’ front lawn.
Neighbors and passersby were invited to enjoy the concert from similarly socially distanced spots.
Most acts – who ranged from beginners to more advanced, in elementary and middle school — were soloists. Their selections included classical, pop and Broadway.
An original song — “Waiting in the Dark” — was composed by Sage Kramer. It was the theme song for a film she, Isabella, Alexander and other friends created during a Westport Filmmakers Inc. camp.
Participants in a triolet wore masks and distanced themselves. Pianists used hand sanitizer before and after using the keyboard. Vocalists used disposable mic covers.
Check out the talent here:
Isabella, Alexander and friends hope the concert will spread far beyond the lawn. They’d like the word to get out on social media, so people to contribute to their cause (click here).
“It’s a good feeling to think of how happy the other families might feel to get food from the money we raised,” Isabella says.
Her mother adds, “We invite all young musicians to take the Make Music Feed challenge by hosting their own micro, socially distanced benefit concert, either live or virtually. Children can make a difference!”
The event — set for the Levitt Pavilion — is part of the 2nd annual 