In a Wellesley basement recently, 17 musicians and eight dancers came together in a show of amazing talent as they performed an uplifting version of The Five Stairsteps’ classic 1970 soul song ‘Ooh Child (Things are Gonna Get Easier)’. And they did it all while social distancing.
Here’s how the artists managed the feat: vocalists, instrumentalists, and dancers performed on location in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Maryland, and Italy, where they recorded their tracks individually on both audio and video. They then sent their contributions to Wellesley resident Chris Georgenes, whose day job is Head of Interactive Design at Patient Discovery where he uses technology to help patients with rare diseases. Once Chris had all 32 tracks of audio and 30 tracks of video in hand, he mixed and edited the artists’ work into a 5-minute music and dance video.
The project was the combined brainchild of Chris and his wife, Becky Georgenes. Becky, a college coach, came up with the idea of the song and reached out to a number of the performers. “I worked with most of the students on their college applications,” she says. “I helped with the layout, watching over Chris’ shoulder, giving my input. Yes, it was a ton of work, but also a lot of fun, and super-inspirational to be a part of. Chris really has a nice combination of musical, artistic, and technical abilities.”
The end result is a display of team-work and talent, the perfect spirits-boost for right now. Many of the contributors are high school and college students who weren’t planning on spending spring-time confined their homes.
With ‘Ooh, Child,’ those students have taken an unexpected life twist and, and Chris says, “come together remotely from their homes for a moment of levity and hope.”
Enjoy the video. And stay with it until the end. You don’t want to miss CC, the sassy diva.
Let’s roll the credits:
More: