Red Cedar Chamber Music Rural Outreach Program

Rural Outreach Concerts

Rural Outreach Concerts is an initiative whereby each of the three concerts developed annually for our Cedar Rapids Concert Series, is taken on the road to tiny rural sites. The goal is to bring high-quality chamber music to rural audiences in a non-threatening way in the comfort of their own environment.

By collaborating with these rural communities, Red Cedar is able to develop a broad audience for chamber music, serve the cultural needs of the under-served rural population in Iowa and offer expanded performance opportunities which stimulates Red Cedar's artistic growth.

Reaching Out: Rural Outreach Concerts was initiated in FY99 with a concert at Sts. Peter & Paul Community Center -- a former Catholic Church in Solon, Iowa with strong ties to the local Czech community. It is located on a gravel road in the country near Solon, and is an activity center that draws audience from many surrounding rural communities. Since then, rural performances have also included various rural libraries, restored historical churches, and more. One example is the St. Wenceslaus Church in Spillville, Iowa, where Dvorak played the organ when he resided in this rural Czech community with his family in the summer of 1893.

Red Cedar Chamber Music now serves over a dozen rural sites. Each now considers a concert by Red Cedar to be an important part of its annual programming.

The program is now hosted by the Ainsworth Opera House. Mike Zahs, the Programming Director, volunteered to collaborate with Red Cedar in identifying and subsequently bringing Red Cedar performances to other small Eastern Iowa Communities. Mr. Zahs is passionate about bringing culture to rural communities. He writes:

"We had over 100 people attend the Red Cedar Chamber Music concert (near our capacity), and they enjoyed the experience greatly. Our community, as well as most other small Iowa communities, has a great and appreciative audience. Most of the opera house audience would not feel comfortable attending a chamber music concert in Iowa City. At the opera house, they can sit with people they know and be more at ease being in the audience."

The program is funded by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Chamber Music America, the James & Norma Jean Rosborough Foundation, the Alliant Energy Foundation, and by generous corportions and individuals. It is presented in partnership with the Ainsworth (Iowa) Opera House.