Our "Gift of Music" initiative will provide custom-designed and specially curated monthly classical virtual concert programs of approximately 40-45 minutes of music free of charge to nursing, independent living, assisted living, and continuing care facilities in Washington, DC.

Constellations Chamber Concerts launched the Gift of Music (GOM) initiative in June 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic to help ease the pain of isolation experienced by DC-area seniors who are on strict lockdown with no visitors allowed because of their high-risk status with the coronavirus. The GOM initiative is meant to complement our Virtual Concert series that presents regular concerts online featuring world-class musicians in varied and exciting programs. Our Virtual Concerts have been ongoing since April 2020, creating enriching and interactive experiences for our virtual audience while providing compensation to performing artists whose livelihoods have largely been cut off by virus-related shutdowns.

The GOM initiative amplifies the impact of our Virtual Concerts by using (with artist permission) the virtual performances with commentary from Artistic Director Ellen Hwangbo as part of special monthly programs compiled by Constellations and distributed, free of charge, to DC-area facilities. We tailor the delivery format to each facility's request, offering DVD, digital download, or streaming options to make it as easy as possible to share the program with their residents during the virus lockdown.

We currently have 21 facilities signed on to receive these monthly programs during the pandemic, but only one so far (Chevy Chase House) is within DC proper. With an Awesome grant, we want to reach out and provide this music to additional senior facilities in DC while continuing to create our concert programs. We have two so far, for June and July 2020, which you can view at these links:
https://vimeo.com/426483906/4f9125c120
https://vimeo.com/435631691/f661678730