Candlelight District

Lighting the way: The Syracuse Symphony Orchestra,
led here by Daniel Hege from the 2008 Candlelight Series, will perform
at the inaugural 2009 event, scheduled for Saturday, July 11, at 8 p.m.
Grant Cooper will be conducting.

 

The annual series
celebrates its 25th year with the first of four concerts on Saturday,
July 11, at the corner of South Franklin and West Jefferson streets.
The summertime concerts began in the mid-1980s before the development
of Armory Square into the cultural and nightlife hot spot it is today.
Begun in an unpaved parking lot which has since been built into Center
Armory’s lineup of restaurants, condos and retail stores, the series
grew from one night in the summer into a multiple-night run of shows. 

The Candlelight Walk, as it was
originally known, was created by the Armory Square Association to
attract attention to the fledgling area and encourage audiences to come
to a specific destination downtown. At its inception, the series was “a
very important part of attracting people here to stimulate the economy
and include the arts in the cultural environment,” said Gloria Romeo, a
member of the Armory Square Association. “It has evolved greatly.”

Part of that evolution stems from the
placement of the stage throughout the years. In 1995, as Center Armory
was being developed, the concert series was moved to the front lawn of
the Museum of Science and Technology, a grassy staging area that
nonetheless did not prove to be the most beneficial location.

“People were inclined to come in for the
concert and then leave,” said Romeo. “We wanted to draw people in to
the center of the square.”

This concern from members of the
Candlelight committee and the Armory Square Association led to the
series as it exists today, with the current main stage location
configured in 2004. Since that move, local businesses have also added
the component of outdoor, candlelit dining.

“The outdoor dining has proven very
successful," Romeo said. “We’ve also worked with area restaurants to
provide full menus, have begun featuring young talent as opening acts
for the main concert, and {the stage location has} extended the sight
lines up Franklin and West Jefferson.”

Even restaurants without direct sight
lines to the concert stage, such as those on Walton Street, bring their
tables and candles outside and offer streetside dining. “They all get
into it and really know that their customers enjoy the ambiance,” Romeo
said.

As the series hurtles toward its silver
anniversary, the changes to its layout and attractions have brought out
some of the largest crowds it’s seen. Approximately 2,000 people showed
up for the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra’s concert last year that kicked
off the series, while sizable crowds turned out for every other act as
well, including the Syracuse Opera. Both acts will be returning for
this year’s run.

But the series is dedicated to smaller
performance groups as well, such as ballet companies, the Central New
York Jazz Orchestra and other orchestras, as well as area country and
blues groups, which have all played there. This year’s lineup is no
different. “The lineup for this year is full of crowd-pleasers,” said
Romeo. “They all have a following of their own, and we’ll bring our own
following as well.”

In addition to the music and business
aspects of the events, the CNY Jazz Orchestra’s July 18 performance
will feature a screening of films from the Syracuse International Film
Festival during breaks.

And though the landmark quarter-century
mark underlines the success of the yearly event, this year’s run did
not come together as easily as other years. The four-week concert
series has been reduced from six weeks in 2008 and seven weeks in 2007,
mirroring the economic slide facing businesses and sponsors.

“With this economy this year it was a
little bit of a struggle,” said Romeo of the shorter schedule. However,
despite the fewer dates, the Candlelight Series will continue its
summertime tradition of bringing local live music to the downtown stage
in Armory Square into the future. “We would like to see {the series}
continue to grow because it’s a necessity of the cultural environment
of the area,” said Romeo. “It’s an important part of our community.”

The Candlelight Series in Armory Square
begins with a performance by the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra on
Saturday, July 11, and will continue every Saturday through Aug. 8,
excluding July 25. All main stage shows start at 8 p.m. with younger
local talent beginning earlier in the evening. For more information,
call 428-9205.

—Dan Rys