The $46,116 grant will help fund the organization’s 2019 Great Performers Series.
(Sarasota, Florida) The Sarasota County Commission awarded the Sarasota Concert Association a $46,116 Tourist Development Cultural/Arts grant to help fund its 2019 Great Performers Series, which runs January 14 through April 3. Celebrating its 74th anniversary, the Sarasota Concert Association continues to bring the world’s most renowned classical musicians to Sarasota County, including such past and present superstars as Rudolf Serkin, Yehudi Menuhin, Isaac Stern, Leontyne Price, Murray Perahia, Olga Kern, and Emanuel Ax. The organization also brings world-acclaimed orchestras to our area, including the St. Petersburg Philharmonic, Cleveland Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic, and Detroit Symphony.
“The TDC grant enables us to continue bringing outstanding artists to Sarasota County who otherwise would not have an opportunity to perform here,” says Joy McIntyre, SCA’s board president, adding that the grant funds will cover, in part, artist fees, promotion and marketing expenses.
“Reading the names of the illustrious artists and orchestras that the Sarasota Concert Association has brought to Sarasota since its founding is like reading a roll call of the greatest artists in music performance history.” McIntyre explains that, from the very start, SCA’s leaders realized that great artists and orchestras come at a high price and that the only way to keep the tickets affordable was to keep the costs of running the organization to a minimum. “Therefore, our board includes music and business professionals who volunteer their time and expertise so that we are able to keep our subscription rates as affordable as possible,” says McIntyre. “It’s a labor of love for each of us.”
The Sarasota Concert Association’s 2019 Great Performers Series features the piano duo Anderson & Roe (January 14); the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (January 24); the Czech National Symphony Orchestra, with mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard (February 11); Academy of St Martin in the Fields, with Jeremy Denk, piano (February 21); the Pavel Haas Quartet (March 15); and the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, with Fabio Bidini, piano (April 3). Five of the concerts are at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall and one concert is at Riverview Performing Arts Center
SCA also presents Music Matinees, a free concert series that includes performances by high-caliber, area-based artists. The series is designed to offer a variety of musical genres, including classical, jazz and opera, and features vocal and instrumental performers. The 2018-2019 season features Aaron Romm, trumpet and Avis Romm, piano (December 10); Marc Mannino, classical and jazz guitar (January 16); Michael Baron and Priscilla Navarro, one piano, four hands (February 6); Sarasota Opera Studio Artists (March 6) and Hein Jung, soprano, and Grigorios Zamparas, piano (April 10). All concerts are held at noon at Beatrice Friedman Symphony Center in Sarasota.
For more information about the Sarasota Concert Association, visit www.scasarasota.org.
About the Sarasota Concert Association
The Sarasota Concert Association (SCA) is a nonprofit organization that fosters greater appreciation for world-class classical music by offering the community two engaging programs from December to April. The Great Performers Series, in its 74thseason, brings world-renowned orchestras and chamber groups to the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall and the Riverview Performing Arts Center. The Music Matinee Series features outstanding regional artists in free community concerts at Beatrice Friedman Symphony Hall and other venues. For more information about SCA, visit www.scasarasota.org.