Not every established community group is old-fashioned. The Dunedin Music Society’s flagship ensemble, the Dunedin Concert Band founded in 1981, won this year’s Global Music Award Bronze Medal for “creativity and originality.”

Competitions are not the primary focus of the performers in the Dunedin Concert Band, as that distracts from their ability to share live music with their circles of influence. However, it is comforting that our programming and adaptability to shift events online during the COVID-19 pandemic’s isolation period is rewarded.

Creativity and originality of the music we perform and the way we share it with the world, are two important factors that Maestro Stephen P Brown, Conductor of the Dunedin Concert Band, takes into consideration when making plans up to two years in advance.

To demonstrate diversity and inclusion, the DCB’s next performance on Sunday, October 17 includes music that Brown planned for immediately before isolations began, and reflects Spanish deserts, an Appalachian celebration of life, and a fast car ride with James Bond. After talking with Robert W. Smith, renowned composer of the “Don Quixote” symphony the band will perform, Brown said “the cultural influences of the African Moors, the Romans and the shift of Castilian territory from Leon in Northwest Spain to La Mancha in the Southeast, contribute to an exciting musical and emotional journey that is centered around a fascinating 400-year old fictional character, who we can actually still see parts of in all of us today.”

Brown’s wife, Melissa, will give a special pre-concert talk as an expert in the writings of Miguel de Cervantes, author of “The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha” and a contemporary of William Shakespeare. The insights she gleaned from composer Smith will further bridge the relationship between literary creativity and musical originality.

With performances all over Pinellas County since isolations began, the Dunedin Concert Band is happy to finally return to its home at the Dunedin Community Center on Sunday, October 17th at 3pm (pre-concert talk is at 2pm with limited seating). For more information, details, and to ensure your admittance, register now at dunedinmusicsociety.org

The world’s largest source of nonprofit information awards its top rating to the Dunedin Music Society.

In times of uncertainty in so many areas of life, the Dunedin Music Society reaches beyond normal expectations with its activities and finances. This transparency has been recognized by Guidestar, the number one philanthropic research database designed to fill in the knowledge gaps you need to find the best charities to donate to and get involved with.

The DMS was recently awarded Guidestar’s Platinum Seal for 2021, the highest ranking possible, because of its strategic plan to “Recover, Rebuild & Reconnect” and for using the Geneva Emotional Musical Scales metrics to determine the effects of live music on audiences and performers.

New residents to the area continue reaching out to the DMS seeking opportunities to perform, learn about music, or attend live, in-person concerts. The DMS has presented outdoor and live-streamed performances since October, and the Dunedin Concert Band recently presented its second indoor performance this year, with Dr. Jeff Traster, the composer of “Declaration” performed during the concert, in attendance. He remarked “What an enthusiastic crowd and a breath of fresh air to experience greater normalcy on our way to Arts Recovery!” More than half the audience were newcomers discovering what makes Dunedin delightful.

Not-for-profit formed to create transparency

The DMS started as the Dunedin Concert Band in 1981. In 2014, the City of Dunedin Parks & Recreation Department asked Maestro Stephen P Brown to assume leadership of the band and create a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) public charity for financial accountability. Instead of just signing the State of Florida template form, it took a steering committee of performers, Parks & Rec reps, audience members and residents 18 months to devise our constitution and bylaws. It was during that process that the organization was named the “Dunedin Music Society” to not limit ourselves to just one band.

Since incorporating in December 2016, the DMS has grown to operate four ensembles, including the Dunedin Concert Band, Florida Symphonic Winds, Pinellas Community Players, and Rhythm Kings Jazz Orchestra, and eight ongoing and annual programs including the Pinellas Festival of Community Bands, Virtual Band Festivals, and a 2022 European Tour. We have a comprehensive membership program, including a VIP Maestro’s Circle, secured a handful of select Music Maker corporate and local business sponsors, and launched our first fundraising campaign called “COVID Catch-Up Challenge.” 

An organization made up of performers, audiences and community advocates, the Dunedin Music Society’s Sustainable Development Goals include good physical and emotional health and well-being, quality education, decent work and economic growth, and reduced inequalities, with the maximum possible transparency.

Passionate individuals are encouraged to contact the DMS at http://dunedinmusicsociety.org or 727.800.3727

We are all very proud that our General Director, Maestro Stephen P Brown wins Best Classical Musician (Reader’s Choice) in Creative Loafing’s Best of the Bay 2020. Pictured here with Latin Jazz Trumpeter Camila Ferrufino.

The Dunedin Music Society won 2nd place for Best Place to Volunteer!

THANK YOU to everyone who voted for us.