NEWSLETTER
• FALL 2012
FESTIVAL FAVORITES & NEW FRIENDS
F
estival fans basked in non-stop sunshine and the sounds of summer, August 4-14, at Memorial Field. Another season in the black was music to our ears after weathering economic challenges and emerging with renewed vigor to streamline our operations and fulfill our mission to make exceptional musicians and great performances accessible to the community and surrounding region. Our amazing supporters, season pass holders and ticket buyers appreciated this year’s lineup, warmly welcoming back two favorites from 2010 – Brandi Carlile and Michael Franti & Spearhead. We are grateful for all the positive comments on our concert series as well as fabulous feedback from educators and students regarding our educational programs. Educational programs during the 2010-11 school year included our Instrument Assistance Program, Youth Strings Orchestra, and scholarships in conjunction with Angels Over Sandpoint and Coldwater Creek. Our 5th Grade Outreach program featured the star of our Grand Finale concert, Mak Grgic, the young classical guitar sensation from Slovenia. The kids loved Mak and so did we! The countdown to our 29th annual summer concert series started on July 14th at Dover Bay with the unveiling of Diana Moses Botkin’s original poster artwork, “Festival Sunset Dance.” Outstanding performances started on opening night, August 4th, with Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers and headliner Rickie Lee Jones followed by the return of Brandi Carlile with Ivan & Alyosha; a sold out show starring Chris Isaak with Lukas Nelson; The Family Concert “A Disney Symphantasy” with the Spokane Youth Orchestra and Studio One Dancers; an “all Idaho night” with singer-songwriters Josh Ritter and Darren Smith; another sold-out dance concert starring Michael Franti & Spearhead with Jason Spooner Trio; and Nashville songwriting legend Rodney Crowell with new country sensation David Nail. The Festival season culminated with our Grand Finale concert “Spanish Serenade,” with the Spokane Symphony Orchestra conducted by Maestro Gary Sheldon, featuring the music of Chabrier, De Falla, Bizet, Rodrigo, and Rimsky-Korsakov. Special guest soloists included classical guitarist Mak Grgic, with special guests, regional guitar masters Paul Grove, Leon Atkinson and Michael Millham. Sandpoint’s own soprano sensation Hailey Fuqua sang three arias from Carmen. During the concert series, patrons were treated to an opening night champagne toast, a complimentary microbrew tasting courtesy of Odom Northwest Beverage and Bill Jones Distributors, and our annual Taste of the Stars wine tasting event before the Grand Finale concert, featuring over 30 wineries from all over the Northwest -- now the largest wine event of its kind in the State of Idaho! Another highlight was our 2nd Annual Sunshine Moonshine Yoga Festival, with over 200 people doing yoga on a pre-concert Friday morning, with Michael Franti playing live music and participating throughout the yoga session. Finale fireworks, sponsored aptly by Avista, and a full moon rising over the mountains, shining onto Lake Pend Oreille at just the right moment provided a memorable finale to a flawless Festival season. Once again, our 700 Early Bird Season Passes sold out before we announced our season in May and we had increased individual ticket sales exceeding our budgeted expectations. We were encouraged by the generosity of our sponsors even in these tough times, and our individual donors really stepped up to give substantially to The Festival’s valuable programs when we needed it most. We remain cautious knowing that the recovering economy and uncertainty of the weather will continue to put The Festival at risk in the future, yet, we always operate from a position of optimism and hope knowing that we have all of you in our corner. We are busy putting together a season worthy of our 30th milestone, so mark your calendars for August 2-12, 2012, and get your Early Bird Season Passes today! n