On the morning of February 14, while the rest of the Valley was waking up slowly, five Phoenix Symphony musicians were already at the starting line of the Mesa Marathon. Bridget (Associate Principal Cello), Viviana Cumplido Wilson (Principal Flute), Jacob Buhler (Second Violin), Christopher Witt (Acting Co-Principal Bassoon), and Isabel Tannenbaum (Assistant Principal Viola) had each signed up on their own. Just five musicians who, somewhere along 
“We all just signed up separately. Then we found out we were all doing it.”
They compared notes in the weeks leading up to the race, occasionally running together, often not. Mostly they trained on their own and came together at the starting line the way you do in a city that feels small enough to keep bumping into people you know.
Later that evening, after their races, several of our racing musicians changed out of their race gear, walked into Symphony Hall, and performed in the pit for Arizona Ballet. It was Valentine’s Day, and the house was full.
It was not the first time Phoenix Symphony Musicians have pulled this off. Back in December, after some of our musicians ran the Phoenix Marathon on the 13th, they came to the hall and played two full performances of The Nutcracker that same afternoon. Back to back. Medals and all.
Bridget wore her medal on the walk from the parking garage, took it off to play, and then put it back on for the walk home. Isabel was in the pit with hers still around her neck. A colleague, Morgen Johnson, who was performing with them that night and watched them arrive, later said they came in looking a little wide-eyed.
They started calling the December feat the “Nutcracker Half Ultra” — run a half marathon, play two ballets..
“We were like, yeah, you did the thing, good job. We’re just proud of each other.”
The camaraderie is real. Jacob made Isabel a sign and drove around the racecourse trying to find her. He never did
What drives musicians to run? Partly it is practical. Running is one of the few athletic pursuits that does not put their hands, wrists, or shoulders at risk. For players who depend on their upper bodies for their livelihood, that matters.
“Running is one of the safer sports for musicians. We have to exercise, but we don’t want to stress our hands.”
Isabel talked about getting more serious about long distance running during a period when she was also going through symphony auditions, a pressure-filled experience in a classical musician’s career.
“I got more into long distance last year while I was taking auditions. If I could prove to myself I could do hard things, like running, then I could do hard things, like taking auditions and winning a job.”
These five came to Phoenix for competitive positions in one of the country’s regional orchestras. They moved here from other places, built their lives here, became part of the city (and even run its races!).
And then there is Viviana.
She did not just finish the Mesa Marathon. She ran it fast enough to qualify for the Boston Marathon. Her colleagues can barely talk about it without lighting up.
“That’s a major accomplishment. She’s a special story.”
She is, and we look forward to sharing that story soon. For now, it is enough to say that the same flutist who performed that night in the pit had, earlier that morning, earned a spot in one of the most celebrated road races in the world.
After the run, after the performance, after the medals came off and the instruments were packed away, they were already talking about what comes next. More races, sometimes together. That seems to be how they like it.
But they will find each other at the finish line. And then they will go perform on the stage after the races.
