Las Cruces Friends of Chamber Music

“Musically Speaking”, 12/12/06

Hello, Friends!

Our chamber opera, “The Christmas Gift”, opens at the end of the week; and, as you can imagine, we are all very hard at work (and feeling quite excited!). The cast are all incredible musicians, and the love and devotion they have brought to this project is such an inspiration to John and I! Our preparations have not been without the occasional “glitch”, but in every case the solution has turned out to work even better than we could have hoped for. We think our cast is astounding, and feel certain our audiences will feel the same! Don’t miss the opportunity to hear and see Bethania Baray, Carrie Oliver, Bob Diven, J.R. Spurlin, Oscar Perez, Daniel Molloy, Philip Christiansen, Irene Brink, Federico Garcia and Maria Elena Armijo bring “The Christmas Gift” to life. Tickets will be available at White’s Music Box as well as at the offices of Doña Ana Arts Council until midday on Friday. After that, available at thedoor 45 minutes prior to each performance. Please be sure to join us and to tell all your friends about the production; we really want to pack the house! Friday, Dec. 15 at 7 PM; Sunday, Dec. 17 at 2:30 and 7 PM at St. Andrew’s, on the corner of Alameda and Mountain. $10 for adults and $5 for children ages 5 to 12. No children under age 5, please. Because performances are open seating rather than designated seats; doors will open 30 minutes in advance of each performance.

Another up-coming event which we hope you’ll join us for will be held at 7:30 PM on December 22 at the Good Samaritan Auditorium. Joseph Sylvan and I will be presenting a violin recital. Admission is open to the public at no charge.

I will be holding a get-together on January 6 for volunteers and potential volunteers. If helping to put the “hands and feet” under our plans for the future is something that appeals to you, we would be grateful for your help. Let me know if you’d like to come see where you can support us with your time and talents!

Additionally, we would welcome financial gifts to help make the things we are working on a reality. Should you wish to make a tax deductible gift before year end, it would certainly help to boost us into the new year.

In 2006 Las Cruces Friends of Chamber Music has seen our dream come true, and that beyond our wildest dreams! In a mere 7 months, we have been able to present a number of well-received, high-quality performances; we’ve enjoyed wonderfully satisfying collaborations with some very fine musicians, and we’ve begun to explore some ambitious options for the year ahead. We can’t wait to see what 2007 will hold!

In closing, I’d like to extend a sincere thank-you, on behalf of myself and the other founders of Las Cruces Friends of Chamber Music, Joseph Sylvan and John Pleasant, to all of you who have helped make all of this year’s wonderful music happen: the talented musicians who have played with and for us, devoted volunteers who graciously help behind the scenes, those who have made financial gifts, many who encourage us with kind words of appreciation; and most of all, to everyone who supports us by simply enjoying our concerts. That’s really what it’s all about!

Musically yours,

Barbara Toth