COVID-19 has had a devastating impact on the music scene, but one Dallas musician is creating new opportunities to get back to work.
“I didn’t realize I was going to feel so stagnant and emotionally and creatively stifled without being able to perform and express myself through my cello,” Jordan Jones told NBC 5.
The Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts graduate and professional cellist said gigs quickly dried up during the pandemic – forcing Jones to live off savings for months.
The idea for a COVID concert series came to Jones during a sleepless night before the first of the month.
“It’s a very tough thing to say I don’t know if I’m going to be able to make my rent,” said Jones.
Jones spread the word about small, private concerts in backyards or on front lawns – anywhere where concert-goers could socially distance.
Local
The latest news from around North Texas.
Neighbors pooled resources to hire Jones for small concerts and families invited Jones to their homes to play. In the two weeks since starting the series of concerts, Jones said she’s booking an average of one gig a day.
“They tell me this has been a treat, this has been the best time that I’ve had since March 11 or whenever the lockdown happened,” Jones said.
Jones shared cell phone video of one family jumping to their feet to dance together during Jones’ rendition of “My Girl.”
“I was playing some Temptations and all of a sudden, they stood up and they started jamming and dancing across the floor with each other,” Jones recalled.
“This is beautiful, this is amazing, this is what I’m doing this for. For this moment, this family is forgetting about the pandemic, social unrest, finances, the uncertainty of the time,” Jones added.
Jones said some of her most touching messages have come from strangers who saw her posts about the COVID concerts.
“People who couldn’t even book me were, like, you’re doing it and you have an amazing idea, keep up. Honestly, those were the most special,” said Jones.
You can book Jones by reaching out to her on her Facebook page.
*Map locations are approximate, central locations for the city and are not meant to indicate where actual infected people live.
