Dear Graduates - See below for a special! -- and I asked the Festival to extend the special offer to SB Newcomers also!     ... Mikell Becker

This is the 2nd season of the Santa Barbara Chamber Music Festival and promises to be even better than the very successful inaugural season last year. The dates of the festival are June 11, 12, 13, 2004. The focus of the Festival is American chamber music, with an American composer in residence and mostly American music scheduled.  The artists are top notch, the venue, First Congregational Church, has excellent acoustics and is intimate in size, yet very comfortable. It is an ideal setting to really enjoy great chamber music and observe fine musicians doing what they do with great passion and skill.

This year's programmatic theme is - Cello Summer ! A full quartet of Cellists will be here to play a variety of music for Cellos from solos to Composer Ken Benshoof's Cello Quartet. This is something you do not want to miss. A fine line-up of musicians will be here to play for us including Seattle's excellent Rainier String Quartet, a fine flutist, a great clarinetist a brace of terrific pianists and more. 

This year the Composer in Residence is John Carbon, a San Marcos High and UCSB graduate is the Professor of Composition at Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, PA.

Oh, about the special offer - Members of The Graduates and the SB Newcomers who buy two tickets for any of the concerts will be invited to the concert previews conducted by the Festival's artistic director, Daniel Kepl. Mr. Kepl will preview each evening's music, discussing the composers and offer listening tips and background information. This should be great for those of us who enjoy chamber music but are unsure about listening to newer or unfamiliar music. In addition to the preview, great wines and excellent hors d'oeuvres will be provided.

A final word, the ticket prices - there are very few really excellent values these days, but SB Chamber Music Festival tickets are only $15 each or two for $25. If you attend all three concerts, I promise you will have the opportunity to immerse yourself in three days of wonderful music. However, if you cannot partake of all three, you may still participate in the preview session each night, followed by a great concert and did I mention the wine and hors d'oeuvres that are included in the experience?

The concerts begin at 8:30 pm each evening, but Graduates and Newcomers must be there by 7:45 pm to participate in the concert preview with the Artistic Director.  If you have additional questions feel free to call Mikell Becker.