Today we’d like to introduce you to Mary Beth Alger.
Mary Beth, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
AHCM grew out of informally organized recitals originally presented in Dorchester homes, starting in the 1970s. We now present concerts of world-class chamber music in the acoustically beautiful venue of Peabody Hall of All Saints’ Church in Dorchester.
The mission of Ashmont Hill Chamber Music is to build community through the shared experience of music. We present accessible, affordable, and intimate concerts of the very highest caliber that reflect and celebrate the diversity of our community – both onstage and in the audience – and engage young people in programs that uplift and inspire.
We further our mission by:
* Producing an annual series of musical events featuring some of the world’s most innovative and celebrated artists
* Creating collaborations with Project STEP, Boston City Singers and other organizations that support the music education of young people from all walks of life
* Developing community concert partnerships in order to engage the broadest possible audience
* Providing refreshments after each concert to foster conversation between the audience and artists
In addition, in our ongoing effort to build the audience of the future, we continue to broaden the definition of chamber music through presenting concerts of new and world music and by programming which seeks to explore unexpected bridges between genres. To this end, we have presented members of Yo Ma’s Silk Road Ensemble, and hip hop violinist superstar Daniel Bernard Roumain (DBR).
We insist on presenting musicians of only the very highest caliber. Recognized artists who have performed include the Borromeo, Harlem and Aeolus String Quartets, pianist George Li, the Claremont Trio, clarinetist Todd Palmer, soprano Jeanine DeBique and many others.
We have also formed partnerships with Boston City Singers and Project STEP.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
In the past three years we have more than doubled the number of concerts presented each season. We now offer 6 concerts a year. We have also raised the caliber of performance tremendously.
While this progress has been encouraging, we still, as is the case for all presenting organizations, work hard to raise the money needed to best fulfill our mission. We are also working to increase audience size, and plan on developing community business partnerships to increase both attendance and audience diversity.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Ashmont Hill Chamber Music – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
What sets us apart from others is that we offer chamber music of the quality typically found at Symphony Hall or Jordan Hall (or some of the other great concert halls) right in the heart of our community, and with a ticket price that is well below what one might pay elsewhere. We offer programs that reflect the diversity of our community. We have a small, intimate venue and each concert is followed by a lavish reception (including wine!) that is open to everyone and allows audience to mingle with the artists.
We are casual, warm and hospitable. We welcome children (in fact children under 13 are admitted free).
We also believe that our involvement of young people sets us apart as we seek to involve them in actual concerts and also provide masterclasses for young musicians. This goes beyond simple outreach.
We work hard to become a strong and visible resource in our community, one that makes the power of music available to all.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
We want to continue to develop community partnerships. We want to increase our involvement with young people from all walks of life, and it goes without saying, that we will continue to offer only the VERY finest musicians.
We want to encourage people from outside Dorchester to attend our concerts. Ashmont Hill is a beautiful neighborhood, filled with beautifully restored Victorian homes and fabulous restaurants (a list is found on our website.) Moreover, our venue, Peabody Hall of All Saints’ Church, is one of the most perfect venues in Boston – recently restored and acoustically fabulous. In fact, the Borromeo Quartet liked the hall so much, they asked to be invited back!
Pricing:
- $25 ticket price.
Contact Info:
- Address: P.O. Box 240253
Dorchester, MA 02124 - Website: ahchambermusic.org
- Phone: 6178277857
- Email: alger.marybeth@gmail.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ashmonthillchambermusic/
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