This year’s First Tuesday Concert season begins in October, one month later than usual, and runs through May. In light of funding declines and an uncertain year ahead, the September performance has been eliminated. We are making strategic, fiscally responsible decisions today to strengthen our future and to ensure that we are responsible stewards of the community’s resources.
Also new this season is the afternoon First Tuesday Concert time—now from 1:00 -2:00 p.m. The new time supports our Charlotte Symphony Orchestra musicians who often have Tuesday rehearsals until 12:30 p.m. This change is just another way we ensure the creation of outstanding music for our deserving community.
See you in October!
Browse through the Charlotte Observer’s online black tie events photo spread by clicking here.
The Salon Party raised over $30,000 for Charlotte Chamber Music. The proceeds from this event help fund free chamber music concerts available to all members of our community and Charlotte Chamber Music’s operating budget – including fees for the many talented musicians who perform in nearly 30 concerts annually.
Thank you to the many hosts, sponsors and ticketbuyers!
Dear friends,
In a move to reduce expenses and ensure a more favorable end to the fiscal year, the Charlotte Chamber Music board of directors has agreed to cancel its May 5 free First Tuesday Concerts. The resulting savings will enhance the organization’s financial position and create a stronger, more secure foundation when the First Tuesday Concert series resumes in the fall 2009.
The Sunday, May 3 Living Room Concert, (a ticketed series), and the annual benefit event on Saturday, May 16 will take place as scheduled.
Charlotte Chamber Music has had a strong season with audiences enjoying the popular First Tuesday Concert season as well as a new interim venue, strong attendance for the Living Room Concerts, and a new brand and name that better reflects the organization’s role and contribution to the community. The board remains committed to providing professional chamber music performances that are available to all members of the community, notably the free First Tuesday Concert series.
Nonetheless, the uncertain economy has resulted in a decline in individual and corporate funding, resulting in the board’s recent action, which also includes a two week staff furlough, and other operating expense reductions to ensure the organization’s long-term sustainability and viability.
Charlotte Chamber Music is making strategic, fiscally responsible decisions today to strengthen tomorrow and create the best possible financial position to weather an uncertain year ahead due to the economy.
While we regret the cancellation of this year’s final First Tuesday Concert, the board’s decision was driven by responsible stewardship of community resources in light of funding declines and projections that the greatest impact to non-profits is yet to come with the July 1 start of FY10.
Difficult decisions now will help ensure that long-term resources remain available and fully intact, notably the organization’s endowment and cash reserves.
We will continue to be good stewards of your resources, but we also need your help. If you have already supported Charlotte Chamber Music, thank you! You have made a difference in ensuring our future as a major art organization in Charlotte.
If you haven’t already joined Charlotte Chamber Music as a donor, I urge you to consider one of many ways to support us either through a direct gift today as part of the Spring Matching Gift Campaign, by attending the May 16 The Salon Party benefit event, or by making a planned gift.
Your generous financial support allows us to
• produce 18 free chamber music concerts that are available to all members of our community,
• build a supportive and creative community for Charlotte’s leading musicians, and
• introduce chamber music to new and growing audiences.
We wish to thank many individuals and businesses, and members of the board that have stepped forward to generously support the organization this season. The community has shown significant support of Charlotte Chamber Music, including musicians from the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra and from the region that allowed us to present 16 free concerts this season, plus a full season of 4 Living Room Concerts.
A recent review by music and arts writer, Steven Brown from The Charlotte Observer is below, or visit charlotteobserver.com
Charlotte Chamber Music had no choice. St. Peter’s Episcopal Church uptown, the site of the group’s concerts for more than a decade, closed its sanctuary for a remodeling. So the series switched to a temporary location nearby: First Presbyterian Church on West Trade Street.
Surprise! Chamber music comes off better at First Presbyterian.
The first program there, in February, wasn’t much of a test. An organ, trumpet and soprano can make themselves heard most anywhere. But when a string quintet played there in March, that settled it. The group sounded fuller and warmer than strings ever do at St. Peter’s.
If you weren’t on hand then, you can decide for yourself Tuesday, when the Triad-based Degas Quartet visits for the series’ April installment.
The acoustics at St. Peter’s have always struck me as dry. And for a while now, something else has nagged at me in listening to Calin Lupanu, the Charlotte Symphony’s first-chair violinist, or Alan Black, the principal cellist, when they’ve played at St. Peter’s. At the church, their instruments have seemed tinny. The same instruments have bloomed, though, during orchestral concerts at the Belk Theater.
I’ll leave it to an expert to explain, assuming he or she would agree. My hunch is that the church’s low ceiling – low by church or concert-hall standards – contributes to the dryness.
For music lovers, the reasons that First Presbyterian works better don’t really matter, do they? Just enjoy it while it lasts.
Antonin Dvorak: String Quintet in G major with Double Bass op. 77, Piano Quintet no. 2 in A major op. 81.(Sound recording review) Click here for more.
Publication: Czech Music
Publication Date: 01-APR-08
Author: Vitek, Bohuslav
Attend the March 3 First Tuesday Concert and enjoy String Quartet in G Major by Dvorak. Featuring an ensemble from the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra and wine and cheese after the 5:30pm concert.
Antonin Dvorak was a Czech composer of Romantic music, who employed the idioms and melodies of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia.
His works include operas, symphonic, choral and chamber music. His best-known works include his New World Symphony (particularly the slow movement), as well as his Slavonic Dances, American String Quartet, and Cello Concerto in B minor.
There is parking available nearby in the Carillon Building, the Marriott, the IJL (behind the Dunhill Hotel on 6th Street). We are no longer able to provide free parking at TransAmerica or near First Presbyterian. Here is a map of all parking options in Uptown: click here.
But the good news is, we will still provide FREE outstanding chamber music by some of the most talented musicians in the region.
We are proud to pay our musicians a competitive wage, and provide free events with food and wine for you to meet the musicians and other music enthusiasts.
We are so grateful for all the financial support we receive from individuals, corporations and grants to provide a full range of music and concerts each season. Thank you, and enjoy the concert!
This Tuesday features Baroque Music for Trumpet and Organ. Here is the full program:
Arie con tromba sola, Alessandro Scarlatti
Suite in D Major, Jeremiah Clarke
Where, ‘er you walk from Semele,Handel
Sonata in D Major, Arcangelo Corelli
Let the Bright Seraphim from Samson, Handel
The talented ensemble includes Mark Dulin (trumpet) who has performed with the well-known Emerson String Quartet, Matt Lavin (cello) who performs regularly with the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra, William Young, (organ) Associate Director of Music and Organist at Myers Park Presbyterian Church and special guest Christina Pier (soprano) who performs with the esteemed Santa Fe and Chicago Lyric opera companies, among others.
See you there!
NC Composer Kenneth Frazelle’s Appalachian Songbook is the program for our next First Tuesday Concert. WDAV’s Jennifer Foster gets insights into the music from the composer, singer Jacquelyn Culpepper and pianist Phillip Bush Saturday at 11:30 a.m. Or visit wdav.org to download the interview.
Our Founder and Artist Director, Alan Black, has resigned effective October 31st. As part of a larger Organizational Assessment launched in August, Alan had already vacated his part-time position and transitioned his role to that of an artistic consultant in an effort to reduce the demands placed upon him by our growing organization.
Our plan is to leave open the position of Artistic Director for the near term and continue the Organizational Assessment we began in August. Our concerts will continue in the same format and the talented musicians, familiar to you all, will continue to perform.
The attached letter from our board explains in more detail Alan’s resignation and Organizational Assessment in more detail. charlotte-chamber-music-update
Thank you for all the ways that you have supported Charlotte Chamber Music. We believe the greatest honor we can bestow upon Alan and our earliest supporters is to continue the vision for providing outstanding chamber music in intimate settings and earn the respect of the community as one of Charlotte’s leading art groups.
