New Coastal Concerts season to begin Oct. 24; tickets on sale now

  
 David Cristy, president of Lewes-based Coastal Concerts, might be found these days relaxing on the Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk, catching his breath before the 2009-10 season begins this fall.

Last season, which ended with a March 28 performance by the Israel-based Aviv String Quartet, was the first year he was president. It was the organization’s 10th anniversary and a season that produced record audiences. “Our attendance averaged over 250 people per concert,” Cristy said. “It was a record year. And we look forward to continuing the world-class quality that our audiences have come to expect.”

The five-concert series that begins in October once again will bring musicians who have played to audiences around the world to the venue at the Bethel United Methodist Church hall in Lewes. The concerts always are on a Saturday at 8 p.m., with a reception following. “We’ve got some exciting things happening this coming season,” Cristy said. “We will have our 50th concert in February when the Daedalus Quartet will perform.”

The Daedalus Quartet played in Lewes in 2007, delighting the audience and receiving a standing ovation. “The Daedalus Quartet will join our supporters the evening before the subscription concert at a special event to celebrate our 50th concert weekend. Daedalus has also agreed to perform an outreach concert in Millsboro on the Saturday morning,” Cristy said. “We will have more details about these special events as they get closer.”

Cristy took over as president of Coastal Concerts from Gavin Braithwaite after serving as vice president. “I’m the first president who doesn’t have the last name of Braithwaite,” he jokes, referring to the fact that Lewes residents Lou and Gavin Braithwaite were the only people who served as president of the decade-old organization until Cristy took over.

“I shadowed Gavin for a year when I was vice president,” he said. “And he’s been there to help me through my first year as president.” While Cristy admits that serving as a president of a nonprofit organization was more work than he thought it would be, he adds, “But I’m hooked. I wholeheartedly support this organization.”

Cristy has been a music lover since his childhood. He describes his family as an artistic one, which had two upright pianos and a potter’s wheel in the kitchen. The family’s high-fidelity sound system played Stravinsky and Bartok, as well as Bach and Beethoven, solidifying his appreciation of classical music.

Cristy moved to Rehoboth Beach 10 years ago with his partner after retiring from a position with the federal government. He soon joined the Southern Delaware Academy of Lifelong Learning (SDALL), where he has served on the council as communications chairman and taught a course in contemporary poetry. He also sings with the SDALL chorus, the Elder Moments. He soon started attending Coastal Concerts. “I was extremely pleased to have learned about this organization,” he said. “It is made up of an incredibly dedicated and talented group of volunteers who built it into one of the best classical music presenting organizations in Delaware.”

Coastal Concerts began in 1999 and has been an all-volunteer organization presenting world-class professional musicians. The concerts are made possible, in part, by grants from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency dedicated to nurturing and supporting the arts in Delaware, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts, and from local donations.

Tickets for the 2009-10 season are already available for $20 per person, per concert. Youth ages 10 to 18 are given free admission at the door both for themselves and for one accompanying adult. Tickets can be purchased individually at the door or in advance on the website coastalconcerts.org. For more information, to be placed on the Coastal Concerts mailing list or to volunteer, call 888-212-6458.

Article provide by www.capegazette.com