Playing through the pandemic, Fresno musician connecting with Zoom, sidewalk serenades

Patrick Contreras has always been about the hustle.

It’s a side effect of being from Fresno and performing as a pop-rock violinist well before YouTube made pop-rock violinists a thing.

So, when the coronavirus outbreak hit and the opportunities for gigs started to shrink up, then totally disappear, Contrers started from scratch and started looking for a new niche for himself.

“I just didn’t want to lay down and take it,” Contreras says, on the phone from his home in Fresno where his performance schedule is thriving while he’s sheltering in place with his wife and kids.

Sidewalk serenades

Before Fresno Mayor Lee Brand set the shelter in place orders last month, Contreras had reinvented himself as a sidewalk performer — something he took from the traditional mariachi.

For $75, payable through Venmo or other payment apps, he showed up at homes and performed from the safety of the sidewalk. At first, he did standard 30-minute sets, but shortened them down to three songs when he realized that, regardless of the intent, he was causing some disruption to the neighborhoods where he was playing.

As he’d start to play, people would gather.

“That’s what I didn’t want,” he says.

He booked 60 to 70 of those gigs before the mayor announced the state-at-home orders. The gigs caught the attention of local news, which led to interest from musicians and managers from around the county, looking to capitalize on the model he had in place. That including the Electric Violin shop in North Carolina, a hub for violin players like Contreras.

When the stay-at-home order went into effect, Contreras stopped booking the sidewalk concerts but he already has gigs in advance May 6, when the restrictions are set to be lifted. He already has close to 20 bookings on Mothers Day alone.

Live streams and conference concerts

In the meantime, he has kept busy in the online realm. Each Sunday he does a charity live stream from his Facebook page, sending any tips for the night to local nonprofits working on the coronavirus response. Last week’s concert benefited FLAG (Front Line Appreciation Group). He hasn’t yet designated a charity for this week and is open to suggestions from those willing to reach out.

And he’s still booking his share of private parties, only now they are on Zoom, where he will pop in, say hello and play a few songs.

Music is something comparable to a hug, Contreras says, which makes it something people need right now.

“People are hungry for entertainment and music and something real,” he says.

“People are starving for it.”

And he’s not alone in bringing it to people. There is no shortage of musicians, both locally and nationally, hosting virtual “quarantine” concerts and other weekly showcases. The Sacramento Bee has teamed up with area venues to curate a series of at-home concerts that stream on its Facebook page.

The emo band American Football even headlined a music festival — inside the video-game Minecraft. It’s an idea Contreras can surely appreciate.

“I hope musicians can find a way to survive this,” he says.

“We’ll all going to have to adapt.”