Letter from the President

By Dale Dean, September 2011

Welcome to another season of AMSF activities! Welcome especially to new members, and thank you to members who have renewed for another year. Thanks also to those who have donated to AMSF. Your gifts are appreciated; along with the annual dues they will be used to fund AMSF activities and publications.

AMSF continues its mission of providing a wide range of performing opportunities as well as special events to help us be better amateur musicians. On November 6, AMSF founder, Matt Harre, will give a master class for beginning and intermediate students. As Matt wrote in the June Keynotes, the idea is to provide a "safe haven" for beginning pianists to play for a different teacher and learn from one another. Our Special Events Coordinator, Dorothea Shellow, is working on other special events for the winter/spring, so please stay tuned. Special events are in addition to the wide range of recitals and outreach events that provide performing opportunities for all members.

As we begin another year of activities, more thank-you's are in order.

Thanks to Paul Williams, who has just finished his term as president. I am grateful for his efforts that kept the organization running smoothly, and for his advice and good wishes as I take on the job. Thanks to the members of the AMSF Board and to all coordinators, whose volunteer efforts make possible the programs that we enjoy. Speaking of coordinators, welcome to Joan Rosenfield, who has become the new Cadenza Recital Coordinator. I hope she will enjoy the job as much as I did. It was always fun to put together a list of performers who brought a wide range of music for us to hear on a Sunday afternoon.

AMSF owes a debt to Joyce Morton, our volunteer Website Administrator, whose revamped and re-energized site presents an attractive and informative introduction to AMSF to the world. Thanks to Libby Francisco, who for years has done AMSF publishing work and made possible the appearance of Keynotes. Thanks to Raye Haug, who tracks our membership, informs us of upcoming events with monthly email reminders, and does the mailing for renewal and invitations to the annual party. Thanks also to her husband, Tom, a past president of AMSF, whom I know does not escape AMSF work. In addition, AMSF is grateful for members who offer their homes for recitals and special events.

Finally, thank you to Matt Harre. Because of Matt's conviction that adults can learn and share in the pleasures and challenges of studying and performing music, we have the AMSF to enjoy.

Welcome to another year!