On behalf of the board of directors I would like to wish you all a Happy New Year!
I’m sure you’ll agree that 2020 is best looked at through the rear-view mirror. Looking ahead to 2021, we see that we are still deep in the woods. While progress is being made, the outlook for performers in any of the arts is bleak.
If we were on our regular schedule, the first concert of the season would have been November 1st; it couldn’t happen. Our next program would be on January 31st. Unfortunately, this one also will not happen.
Our third program of the season is scheduled for May 2nd. Although it looks like a possibility, we would have to have plans firmly in place by March 1st. I don’t believe this is reasonable, so unless something miraculous happens, the 2020-2021 season will fade into the mist.
The frustration and disappointment level for all of us is high. However, we all know the value of music in our lives and in our communities, so we will show some of Job’s patience. Musicians continue to practice in order to keep their skills sharp for that time when we can meet together again.
So you are aware, CPOTR is financially secure at this time. We don’t pay any salaries or other fees, so we only spend money when we are producing a concert. If you desire, though, we would accept donations to our cause. The address is 761 Dorothy Court, Arcata CA 95521.
Thank you for your continued support over the past 11 years. We look forward to presenting more musicto stir your heartsin the not-so-distant future.
North Coast Brass
(L to R) Dan Aldag, Chris Cox, Kearney Vander Sal, Fred Tempas, Tom Hyde, Mike Robertson, Ronite Gluck
Composers: Casey Martin (b. 1989) and John W.N. Palmer (b. 1954)
Cat's Cradle String Quartet (L to R) Sue Fowle, Julie Fulkerson, Mark Creaghe, Gwen Post
Mozart k.465 "Dissonant" Quartet
Humboldt Harmoniemusik
Front: Garrick Woods, Kenneth Ayoob, Gwen Gastineau-Ayoob, Don Bicknell
Back: Virginia Ryder, Marsha Lang, Aaron Lopez, Anwyn Halliday
Not Pictured: Susan Sisk, Michael Robertson, Raili Makela
Dvorak Serenade for Winds, Cello and Bass, op 44
“Music you love played by musicians you know” is the motto and mission of the Chamber Players of the Redwoods. We present three free concerts per year representing the best of classical chamber music in all genres and configurations, and provide local musicians a venue for performance.
Click/press for History
Chamber Players of the Redwoods (CPOTR) is the North Coast element of an international community of chamber music players and an outgrowth of the annual Humboldt Chamber Music Workshops which have taken place at Humboldt State University since 1957, involving hundreds of musicians each year from across the nation. Many North Coast musicians take part in the HSU workshops, and form chamber ensembles to enjoy year-round playing of works by Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms and other composers of masterworks.
In the Spring of 2007, three local chamber groups joined forces to present a public concert. With the cooperation of Dr. Kenneth Ayoob, then Chair of the Humboldt State University Music Department, a concert was organized by Val Phillips, a horn player, retired dean and Emeritus Director of the Humboldt Chamber Music Workshops, HSU’s Fulkerson Recital Hall and a grand piano were made available.
On May 13, 2007, these groups of chamber musicians presented Friends of Mozart: Quintet for Piano and Winds, K 452, W.A. Mozart Felicia Oldfather, piano;
Ellen Weiss, oboe;
Gwen Gasteneau-Ayoob, clarinet;
Valgene Phillips, horn;
Justin Sousa, Bassoon Meadowood String Quartet: Quartet in G, F.J Haydn; Tango, Carlos Gardel Betty Bliss, Marilyn Page, violins, Stefan Vaughn, viola, Eric Jones, 'cello Springville Horn Quartet: Concertino, Alexander Mitushin; Two Pieces, Nicolai Tscherepnine; Audiation Set, Val Phillips; Two Fripperies, Lowell Shaw Horns: Michael Thompson, Robert Peoples, Christina Foreman, Valgene Phillips
The 2007 concert was viewed as a “pilot project” to see how to design a new venture on the North Coast art music scene. Val Phillips continued to organize concerts while work went on. There were questions: Would players form groups?? They did, and do, new ones each season. Would listeners attend live chamber performances? They do. How would we get the word out? We developed a system—posters, email broadsides, press releases, public service announcements. Which halls can we play in? We searched and found wonderful venues in beautiful, acoustically warm halls in Humboldt County. Should we form a non-profit? Yes. Chamber Players Of The Redwoods became a 501(c)(3) non profit corporation in 2010, great thanks to Renee Taylor, our accountant. Would we have a working Board of Directors. Yes, all 8 form a fine team. All have tasks. Our concerts are free, donations welcome. Would that approach pay the bills? We rely on listener contributions at the concerts. And yes, it does pay the bills.
Our mission—serve musicians with performance opportunities, serve North Coast listeners with live art music by composers of masterworks – is serving our community.
![2019-20 Concert Dates [also announced below]](ESO-ad-2020.JPG)
