24 Monterey County GIVES! 2024 mcgives.com Arts & Culture DONate online mcgives.com will fund the purchase of six backup batteries to support new solar panels (last year’s Big Idea). “Our family visits the CAA gallery often to enjoy outstanding shows curated by local artists in a welcoming, dog- and child-friendly atmosphere. We are consistently inspired by the diverse artworks, and we appreciate the opportunity to meet and support exceptional artists from around the Monterey Bay area.” -Brooke and Warren Sampson Carmel Bach Festival Year Founded: 1935 Paid Staff and Volunteers: 11 paid, 82 volunteers Budget: $3,700,000 624-1521 bachfestival.org Big Idea: Carmel Bach Festival brings music into schools and after-school programs on the Monterey Peninsula, Salinas and South County. Crossing Cultures presents chamber music ensembles for students in grades three to 12. These multicultural school assemblies and clinics’ Big Idea exposes students to diverse professional musicians. An additional program, Sing Out Loud!, helps teach songwriting to fifth-graders, with the help of a team of pro singers, composers and lyricists. Students in this program create six original songs in two weeks. “The Bach Festival has been instrumental in providing high-level musical exposure to the music students at Carmel Middle School. They offered gratis brass coaching. One year they dove deeper by providing a brass coach to form the CMS Brass Ensemble. Over the course of eight weeks the brass ensemble worked on fundamentals and learned a brass arrangement of ‘Simple Gifts,’ which was performed in the CMS Winter Concert. It was an uplifting experience for that group, all of whom felt inspired to continue at the high school level (and beyond!).” -Sarah Wadsworth Carmel Music Society Year Founded: 1927 Paid Staff and Volunteers: 0 paid, 10 volunteers Budget: $200,000 625-9938 carmelmusic.org Big Idea: What’s better than seeing professional classical music concerts in-person? Seeing them for free! The Carmel Music Society’s ongoing Four For Free program offers four free seats for any of this nonprofit’s seven concerts when a group includes one K-12 student and one adult. This Big Idea is multifaceted: it helps boost appreciation of classical music across generations, teaches concert etiquette in a welcoming concert setting and provides high-quality artistic experiences to listeners, regardless of ability to pay. “It is amazing how all performances end with extended ovations from the audience.” -Beth Bates Carmel Valley Art Association Year Founded: 2020 Paid Staff and Volunteers: 2 paid, 50 volunteers Budget: $154,000 659-2441 carmelvalleyartassociation.org Big Idea: Carmel Valley Art Association’s Big Idea supports the future of art with its Just For Kids free art workshops. These workshops bring together professional artists and creative kids to create “masterpieces” in various mediums, like painting and sculpting. The CVAA collaborates with diverse organizations like Friends of Carmel Valley Library, Carmel Valley Youth Center and Tatum’s Treehouse to reach kids of all ages, interests and abilities. A successful summer series and after-school programs keep the creativity flowing between CVAA’s workshops. “So many artists, so many small business owners, so many children interested in art and so many remote families in our community who cannot access facilities, talent and education in urban areas. Carmel Valley Art Association is the conduit to accessible art education, giving children the joy of creativity while providing the economic venue for local artists to create, display and sell their pieces.” -MaryAnn Leffel Carmel Dance Festival Year Founded: 2021 Paid Staff and Volunteers: 15 paid, 5 volunteers Budget: $300,000 (310) 923-2766 carmeldancefestival.org Big Idea: The Carmel Dance Festival continues to grow in its mission to share dance performances and education with the masses. But in order to do that, a portable stage would really help. This Big Idea funds a world-class portable stage, providing a safer environment for dancers while empowering the nonprofit to bring its art to communities in more far-flung places. This stage will also expand opportunities for fellow nonprofits that wish to stage their own performances, fostering a collaborative arts community. “Carmel Dance Festival has made a major art form approachable and relevant to the community, accessible via community dance classes and fantastic performances that are often free of charge and always inspiring. I am thrilled to be a part of it and looking forward to what will happen next.” -John Tilley spotlight “It inspired me to play more music, and more often.” -Vanessa S., Ensemble Monterey
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