Community Arts Support
ACHF Arts Access
We present chamber music ensembles in concerts and outreach activities, attended by hundreds of audience members and outreach participants who have high-quality experiences that expand their knowledge and experience of chamber music. In addition to anecdotal feedback from audiences, our board and staff use concert audience surveys, feedback forms from pupils and teachers at schools and other outreach events, attendance, and financial statements for evaluation of programs.
The Chamber Music Society presented professional chamber music ensembles and provided opportunities to experience and learn about chamber music performed by top-quality professional musicians at six formal concerts each season and twenty-four outreach programs last season. Outreach participants at several schools and audience members at two family concerts learned about the instruments, repertoire, composers, related history, and the musicians. Workshops and masterclasses provided group learning opportunities for advanced students and adult amateur musicians. Whitney Senior Center events provided older adults with opportunities to hear and enjoy shorter and more informal chamber music concerts. Audience and participant surveys and face-to-face feedback were obtained during the events. Fostering understanding and appreciation of chamber music has been part of our mission for many years. School performances and Family Concerts, mentioned above, are part of this. They always include introductions and explanations suitable to the age of the listeners, as well as opportunities for audience members to ask questions. Additionally, we always invite performers to speak to the concert audience, and many do. We find this to have more of an impact than written program notes, although we include those also when appropriate. Commentary during concerts also serves to create a relationship between performers and audience members, which enhances the total experience. The activities that were primarily geared toward enhancing the understanding and appreciation of chamber music included the events at Whitney Senior Center and the masterclasses and sessions involving coaching. However, all of our outreach activities inherently have an educational component. We have always made a point of taking groups to schools with high numbers of students who qualify for free or reduced price lunches, ensuring that we serve economically needy children. While we program our free Family Concerts to offer families with young children a chance to hear these fine ensembles perform a shorter less formal concert, we find that grandparents and other senior citizens comprise about 15-30% of these audiences. Whether it is the free admission, daytime performance, or a shorter program that draws those audiences, we know many people young and old would not otherwise be able to attend our concerts.
Other, local or private