The sound of music

COEUR d’ALENE — Music is more than something we listen to, said Jan Pellant, conductor of the Coeur d’Alene Symphony.

It uplifts. It inspires. It communicates.

The Coeur d’Alene Symphony does all that by bringing unique musicians together to create something beautiful.

“It’s a very diverse group,” Pellant said.

But when it comes to music, he said people make one big mistake: They believe the best orchestras are the ones with the best musicians.

Not so.

To make his point, he said if there were two of the famous cellist Yo Yo Ma performing next to each other, it would not guarantee they would sound fabulous.

“Why? Because it’s composition,” Pellant said Tuesday morning before about 40 people at the Coeur d’Alene Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Upbeat Breakfast at The Coeur d’Alene Resort.

He spoke of the power and energy of music and how the symphony benefits business and creates community.

Good conductors are leaders who combine the talents of each musician, many instruments, into something that won’t be heard elsewhere, he said. A good conductor doesn’t create sound, but finds the right sound — that balance where no instrument, no musician, overpowers the other.

“It’s teamwork coming together,” he said. “All the time, teamwork.”

And if it hits the notes, a symphony can make people, for a few moments, forget about their daily lives.

Literally, get lost in music.

“The Coeur d’Alene Symphony is trying to make a unique, unique sound,” he said.

But Pellant said it goes beyond beautiful music. The CDA Symphony is good for community. It’s good for business. It's good for reputation.

Through the symphony's music, “Everyone in the world is learning more and more about this wonderful city,” he said.

Such is Coeur d’Alene's reputation that it can invite high-level, accomplished artists to town.

“We don’t necessarily have to travel to the whole world. We can bring all the great talents to the city,” he added.

Just as the flute, violin, trombone and guitar must unite to bring out the best in each other, so must the people of a community, Pellant said.

Together, it's an opportunity “to show ourselves in all of the possibilities.”

The Coeur d’Alene Symphony, which postponed its 2020-21 concert season to 2021-22 due to the coronavirus, has been around 42 years.

It will be back, perhaps even better than before, Pellant said, because the “whole team is interested in achieving great things.”

“The Coeur d’Alene Symphony has the fire and the willingness to constantly be improving,” he said.