 Click on "Contact" above to read the latest Newsletter. The four of us, including the newly minted Artisan, Caleb Polashek (thanks again Paula - it was a blast), have completed our various summer schedules of music festivals and camps, recreational travels, and some much needed down time. We are very much looking forward to not only a new season of music-making in our glorious city but also to the next chapter in the story of the Artisan Quartet. There will be many opportunities to hear the newest version of the Artisan Quartet perform this season, and we will send out a full schedule soon. What you need to know right now is that our first concerts will be on our own Artisan Quartet Series, as we kick off the fifth season in October at the Blackerby Stage and Studio Recital Hall - click on schedule page above for more information and to purchase your seats online. You may also reserve seats by calling Bruce Williams at (512) 497-5496 or getting your tickets at the door at concert time. Artisan Quartet Series Fall 2016 October 14, 2016, 7:30 PM October 16, 2016, 4:00 PM Blackerby Stage and Studio Recital Hall 1111 W. Anderson Lane, Austin, TX Haydn: Opus 74/3 "Horseman" Dvorak: Opus 51 "Slovanic" Our newest project, the Mason County Chamber Music Festival (MCCMF), will present it's second season April 2017 in Mason, Texas. After a very successful inaugural season, the MCCMF presented by the Odeon Preservation Association (OPA), will present "Mostly Mozart" in season two. We are delighted to again collaborate with the OPA to create a chamber music festival during the wildflower season and year two will again include concerts in the historic Odeon Theater, at Mason High School for a variety of aged school children, and free concerts in the Mason County Courthouse and the First United Methodist Church. The Artisan Quartet will be in residence and the guest artists for this "Mostly Mozart" extravaganza will be Rick Rowley (piano) and the fine musicians of the Wild Basin Winds. The OPA is a very strong non-profit organization with a proven track record, including the funding of extensive renovations on the Odeon (with future renovations planned and paid for) and presenting concerts there for over ten years. Here is the fundraising letter the OPA sent to their supporters about the MCCMF: Season one letter from Cathy Terrell, Project Committee Chair and OPA Board Member I am writing to you about an exciting new cultural initiative in Mason County and to invite you to help make it happen. The Odeon Preservation Association (OPA) and the Artisan Quartet from Austin plan to create an annual classical chamber music festival in Mason during the spring wildflower season. Through this festival the citizens of Mason and surrounding counties gain access to world class chamber music without having to travel to Austin or San Antonio while at the same time creating awareness of the Arts in Mason, the Odeon theatre and the Odeon Preservation Association. The Artisan Quartet performed at the Odeon on May 2nd, 2015 and demonstrated that there was a huge appetite for this kind of music. The concert was an overwhelming success. The festival is planned for March 31 through April 3d of 2016. There will be several concerts at different venues and some will be free to the public, including a concert for all the high school students in the school auditorium. The youth concert for the Mason high school students can stir the imagination of the students and the other free concerts will ensure that everyone in the community can attend an event. This festival weekend could also become an important economic benefit to service related local businesses such as B&B’s, restaurants, service stations, etc. The event will benefit Mason County both educationally and culturally as well as economically. To make this exciting dream a reality will require generous support from the Mason County community. The projected budget for the 2016 festival is about $20,000. As is true for any performing arts production across the country, ticket sales will cover less than half that amount. That is why we’re asking you to consider becoming a Festival Sponsor. We are enclosing a list of donor levels for your consideration. All donors will have their names listed in our programs, and will be mentioned at curtain time before the concert at the Odeon starts. The Odeon Preservation Association is a 501©3 organization and your donation will be tax deductible. I or another Festival Steering Committee member would be pleased to tell you more about our Festival and how your organization can play an important part in this wonderful new event for Mason County. Please contact me at 325.347.0691 or 325.218.2353 or cjterrell@outlook.com. We look forward to hearing from you. Sincerely, Cathy Terrell – Project Committee Chair and OPA board member Donor levels Chamber Music Friends (Gift up to $100) Mendelssohn Circle (Gift of $101 - $499) Schubert Circle (Gift of $500 - $999) Dvorak Circle (Gift of $1000 - $2499) Haydn Circle (Gift of $2500 - $4999) Mozart’s Gold Circle (Gift of $5000 - $9,999) Beethoven’s Platinum Circle (Gift of $10,000 and above) Donor Premiums In appreciation of your tax deductible donation to the Mason County Chamber Music Festival we will list all donors’ names in all of our programs. We will thank all donors at curtain time at the Odeon theatre. Platinum and Gold Donors will be invited to a private cocktail party to meet the musicians. Gifts in kind and volunteer hours will also be recognized. Mason County Chamber Music Festival falls under the umbrella of the Odeon Preservation Association and is a 501 ©3 non-profit organization. Please make your checks out to: The Odeon Preservation Association (OPA) and write MCCMF on the memo line. Please mail your checks to: MCCMF, P O Box 1647 Mason, Texas 76856 Full text of House Resolution 703: By: Naishtat H.R. No. 703 WHEREAS, Since 2009, the Artisan Quartet of Austin has been delighting audiences with its spirited performances of string quartets by classical and contemporary composers, and the group is being featured in two concerts during the 2012-2013 season of the Austin Symphony; and WHEREAS, The origins of this distinguished ensemble date back to the late 1980s, when violinist Richard Kilmer and violist Bruce Williams joined with two other musicians to form the Austin String Quartet, which was then renamed the Camilli Quartet; over the next few years, this lineup performed 40 of classical music's greatest string quartets, ranging from pieces by Beethoven to Bartok; and WHEREAS, After the two other members accepted positions overseas, Mr. Kilmer and Mr. Williams continued to perform informally with a variety of musicians as the Austin String Quartet, and during those years, cellist Douglas Harvey became a regular member of the group; and WHEREAS, The Artisan Quartet was created in 2009 with the addition of violinist Paula E. Bird, and since then, the group has performed in many places around Central Texas, including the Victoria Bach Festival, the Blanco Performing Arts Association Concert Series, the Twilight Concert Series in Jonestown and Lago Vista, the Saint Cecilia Music Series in Austin, and the Salon Concert Series in San Antonio; in addition to the great Classical era string quartets by Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven, the group regularly plays pieces by the great Romantic composers Tchaikovsky, Grieg, and Borodin, as well as modern works by Philip Glass and Roberto Sierra; and WHEREAS, In March 2012, the quartet made its Carnegie Hall debut in New York, playing before a sold-out crowd in the Weill Recital Hall Chamber and Solo Music Series, and members of the ensemble are nearing the end of the two-year Genius at Play series, in which they are performing a complete cycle of all the Beethoven string quartets; during the 2012-2013 season of the Austin Symphony, the Artisan Series is featuring these four gifted musicians in two performances in the Smith Family Chapel at Riverbend Church; and WHEREAS, For the past four years, the Artisan String Quartet has helped to show that Austin is indeed the Live Music Capital of the World in more ways than one, and their stirring performances in Austin, across Texas, and around the nation continue to add to their growing reputation among classical music lovers everywhere; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 83rd Texas Legislature hereby honor Richard Kilmer, Bruce Williams, Douglas Harvey, and Paula E. Bird of the Artisan Quartet for their talent and dedication and extend to them sincere best wishes for continued success; and, be it further RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be prepared for the group as an expression of high regard by the Texas House of Representatives. The Artisan Quartet shops at the Blackerby Violin Shop for all our string playing needs. |
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