Dear Friends of Dumbarton

As we sit together in this warm, intimate setting of Dumbarton Church there's something you should know: thirty years ago things were different. The Washington music scene didn't really exist and Dumbarton didn't always look like it does now. When we first started, there wasn't a useable stage, no permanent piano and no cushy chairs. It took us years to build an audience and get to where we are now.

I want to take a minute, now as we celebrate our 30 th year, to tell you about why we began Dumbarton Concerts. My best friend, Leah Johnson, and I love chamber music. She is a pianist and I grew up with my Quaker parents' love of great music. But in Washington, DC in 1978, the only places to hear a cello recital or a piano quartet was either the Phillips Collection or, occasionally, the Library of Congress. The Kennedy Center had only just opened, sans the Terrace Theater, and it did not yet have a space for chamber music. We were more likely to hear about a great chamber piece being performed in the regal homes of Supreme Court Justice Abe Fortas or arts patron David Kreeger, than at any public venue.

There were few chamber music offerings and even fewer chamber musicians in town. In our opinion, this needed to stop. We needed to have something here in DC. So Leah and I pooled what little money we had and founded Dumbarton Concerts. We begged our friends and family to pitch in more so we could actually pay the musicians! We printed the programs on J. Reilly Lewis' (of the Bach Consort and Cathedral Choral Society) mimeograph machine (remember the purple dittos you used to get in school?) on the morning of the concert while Reilly served us coffee. The concerts were free the first year. The second year we were a little bolder and charged $2.50.

But that was a long time ago and much has changed. There are many places in the metropolitan area to hear chamber music, but I believe that Dumbarton presents the best programming and the most gorgeous music in the most intimate space that everyone can enjoy. We are not exclusive and we've never been stuffy, which is why we remain vibrant, fresh and inviting.

For many people, coming back to Dumbarton Concerts year after year evokes that wonderful feeling of home – of comfort, warmth and belonging. You won't find that many places, but if you love chamber music and the feeling it gives you then Dumbarton Concerts will feel like home. Maybe even better.

Enjoy our 30th season!
Connie