First off, THANK YOU ALL.
I hope that with this first season, we have proven our ability to present new music for chamber ensemble in meaningful experiences to Houston. The feedback that you have all given back to us has been encouraging and helpful while we've taken risks and dealt with unfamiliar challenges. You have proven to us that there are indeed curious listeners in Houston who appreciate what we have to bring, and have given us hope that we may one day succeed in making this a viable career.
We couldn't have done any of this without the collective of musicians that make up Loop38. It is daunting enough to decide to give up our livelihood preparing for concerts, playing gigs, and teaching students in order to organize these performances, but having these musicians that also are passionate about it has made it all worth it:
Timothy Steeves
Ling Ling Huang
Dian Zhang
Giancarlo Latta
Jarita Ng
Jebat Kee
Jakob Nierenz
Will Kremer
Austin Lewellen
Caitlin Mehrtens
Christina Hughes
Doug DeVries
Justina Chu
Katie Hart
Maiko Sasaki
Thomas Frey
Ben Roidl-Ward
Isaac Schultz
Masahito Sugihara
Danny Kamins
Tanner Antonetti
Cameron Kerl
John Church
Daniel Hawkins
Hugo Valverde
Daniel Egan
Michael Chen
Frances Lee
Craig Hauschildt
Brandon Bell
As classically trained musicians from the top conservatories in the world, many of us at Loop38 have a lifelong appreciation and love for the classics. However the options to perform the music of today is incredibly limited, particularly in the "chamber orchestra"/"large ensemble" size we love so much, with its perfect blend of soloistic instrumental playing with the timbral possibilities of a full orchestra. We realize the value and effectiveness of playing today's music for today's audiences, and hope that it can be recognized as more than a passion-project or hobby, and instead to be on par with an orchestra career.
I took a MBA class at Rice last semester and came out of it realizing how important it is to go after the things you want, but also if it doesn't work, to fail fast. I am delighted and yet saddened that we are losing many of our musicians this year to amazing jobs. Prove to us that Loop38 has a place in Houston to stay, to continually challenge the cultural landscape, and to offer viable careers in the arts, by participating in our first fundraising campaign, giving us feedback, and coming out to hear our shows. Thank you!
-YC