HOUSTON — A global music effort is working to keep us healthy by fighting COVID-19 with scores of Houston musicians who are also doctors and nurses.
The project has helped the U.N. raise $5 million in its first month after its debut on May 22.
Emmy-nominated composer Sharon Farber had the idea to launch a small project to salute and raises funds for COVID-19 workers. But small became huge, international.
“You can see it had a lot of thought in it, a lot passion, a lot of love," Farber said while looking at the finished video.
From the sweeping shots of iconic worldwide landmarks like India’s Taj Mahal to the Sidney Opera House in Australia, that much is clear. The breathtaking scenery is set to to Farber’s rendition of "I'm Standing With You." The 2020 Oscar-nominated song was written by Diane Warren for the film Breakthrough.
Farber, based in Los Angeles, needed a few musicians to accompany the singers. She thought who better for this kind of effort than the award-winning Texas Medical Center Orchestra. Farber called the orchestra’s artistic director and conductor Libi Lebel in Houston.
“Within 2 hours, Libi called me and said, ‘OK, I have 75 people who want to participate.’ I said, ‘But the arrangement is only for a small group.’ She said, ‘Well, rearrange it!’” Farber said.
The Texas Medical Center Orchestra is made up of doctors, nurses and health care professionals. They were doubly impacted by COVID-19.
“We had to cancel our season so abruptly. So this project came at just the right time," Lebel said.
Farber recorded a simple demo vocal and attached a click track, an electronic metronome. She sent that along with each musician’s score.
“We each had to record our own video at home," Lebel said.
It was tricky and required many attempts. Each musician listened to the demo recording thru a headphone, while playing and recording his or her part.
In the end there were a stunning 170 performers from around the globe, including more Houstonians. Reverend Michael Gott from Unity of Houston was one of the vocalists.
“It could be a total mess, but I called the best engineer in town," Farber said.
It was a herculean effort. Sound engineer Michael Stern mixed nearly 200 sound tracks. He created a complete orchestra, by adding one musician at a time.
“We had to make it look like and sound like they were all in one room in the same time. That was one of the greatest challenges we had," said director Gev Miron.
Every musician who played is seen in a small video box, superimposed over video of a large concert hall. It’s a bit like the Zoom call “Brady Bunch” view, but on steroids.
Miron wanted more than a Zoom video, though. He had dramatic shots taken of monuments from around the world, then superimposed the vocalists over the landmark from their home country.
“This could be almost like a live event. What would it be like if you were out there, walking down the streets and then you had this show going on...on the screens, around all those landmarks," Miron said.
A scene stealer is 9-year-old Eden Kontesz, Farber’s daughter. The already seasoned performer sings, opening and closing the video.
“People who have the virus, I think it just warms their heart," Eden said about the project.
Click here to watch "I Am Standing With You."