May 5, 2021
Last year when we were forced to cancel our Spring and Fall live concerts, the board of directors was determined to find a way to continue the work that began 66 years ago. Our streaming performances have provided some solace for all of us during this difficult time. With donations from our members and a grant from ArtsWestchester, the streaming performances provided financial support to musicians.
We know you share the desire to return to live concerts as soon as possible and so I wanted to provide an update on what we have been doing.
While guidelines from New York State will ultimately determine what is possible, we are becoming optimistic about the possibility of having live concerts this Fall and next Spring. At present, the following ensembles are scheduled to appear:
- PUBLIQuartet Sun. Sept 12 , 2021
- Wu Han, Philip Setzer, David Finckel, Sat. Sept 25, 2021
- Academy of St. Martin in the Fields Chamber Ensemble, Sat. Oct. 16, 2021
- Jonathan Swenson, Sat. March 19, 2022
- Pacifica Quartet and Orion Weiss, Sat. Apr. 2, 2022
- Jerusalem Quartet, Sat. Apr 23, 2022
We will place the highest priority on safety for all, and so it is possible that attendance will be restricted to those who are able to provide proof of vaccination. New York State has provided a program known as the Excelsior Pass which could be used to facilitate this. It is too early for us to say if this will be required but it is one of the options we are exploring. You can learn about the Excelsior Pass program at this link. https://epass.ny.gov/home
It also may be necessary to change our venue or dates. We are aggressively exploring convenient alternatives in Westchester County in the event that the auditorium in Sleepy Hollow is not feasible. We will provide updates when any changes are made through email, at our website and on our Facebook page.
In the event that live concerts are not possible, we will continue to provide streaming performances through our website, when possible, with the same ensembles on our current schedule. But our preference is to present the musicians in person .We have stayed in contact with the chamber music community and I can assure you, the performers are eager to begin performing in front of audiences again.
I will keep you updated as the situation becomes more clear. Thank you for your continued support and patience. And, in the meantime, please continue to enjoy our streaming performances.
Susan Harris, President, Friends Of Music Concerts