STAFF

 Beaches Fine Arts Series is grateful for the faithful support of St. Paul’s by-the-Sea Episcopal Church.  Since 1972, the church has provided its acoustically unmatched, award-winning sanctuary for our concerts and educational outreach programs, in addition to office space for our operations and use of the Parish Hall for our receptions and art exhibits.         www.SPBTS.NET

Beginnings

When he arrived from Chicago in 1967 to become the choirmaster and organist at St. Paul’s by-the-Sea Episcopal Church in Jacksonville Beach, BFAS founder Jim Johnson found the beaches had very little in the way of classical music offerings.

Jim was determined to change that, and his belief in the power of great music to prositively affect all people led to the founding of Beaches Fine Arts Series in 1972, which has always been free to all people.  With the support of the rector at that time, and the underwriting of costs by the church, Jim’s vision became a reality.  Sadly, Jim passed away in 2017.  But his legacy continues with the annual James D. Johnson Memorial Organ Concert.

Concert Season

Since 1972, Beaches Fine Arts Series has offered people of North Florida the chance to enjoy world-class music and dance in an annual season of performances, all for free. Programming encompasses an eclectic blend of styles from classical to contemporary, jazz to world music and dance, and traditional to avant-garde.

Through the years, BFAS developed a reputation as an organization known for presenting world acclaimed artists in an outstanding acoustic. As a result, American Public Media began recording BFAS concerts for broadcast on the venerable national and international program, Performance Today, on NPR.

Performance Today features live concert recordings that can’t be heard anywhere else, as well as in-studio performances and interviews. It is America’s most popular classical music radio program. The show is broadcast on nearly 300 public radio stations across the country, and reaches approximately 1.4 million listeners each week. BFAS is the only series in North Florida to be recorded regularly each season for broadcast on American Public Media’s “Performance Today” on National Public Radio.

Educational Outreach Programs
Artists who perform on our series also perform educational outreach workshops as part of our award-winning outreach programs for thousands of students in North Florida including elementary, middle school, high school, and college students.

We typically target schools whose funding has limited the arts exposure all children should have, but many do not. We pay for bus transportation to and from our outreach concerts, where children are entertained and have an opportunity to ask questions of the artists.

Once per year, we host an artist or group for an entire week in an extended residency. Specific and appropriate schools are selected to receive the artists in their classrooms for in-depth study. Activity books and lesson plans are produced for the teachers to relate art and music with core academic subjects.

Art Exhibits
At each reception following our home venue concerts, we present an art exhibit featuring the works of a regional visual artist. All works are available for purchase, and we encourage concert goers to support these exceptionally talented artists.

Volunteers & Fundraisers
Local community organizations donate food for our receptions and assist with ushering at the concerts. These “Community Hosts” include businesses, churches, schools, philanthropic and service organizations, as well as other arts organizations.We also rely on a large corps of wonderful volunteers who serve collectively as our “Concert Crew” at each of our concerts, and annual fundraisers, including First Coast Dancing with the Stars.  First Coast Dancing with the Stars began in 2013 and is held at WJCT Studio A in downtown Jacksonville. It continues to sell out each year. This successful fundraiser thrives because of our wonderful volunteers.

Funding
In addition to our annual fundraisers, our ability to remain free relies on community financial support, including Corporate Sponsorships, Grants, Foundation Support and Individual Donations.

Beaches Fine Arts Series is grateful for the faithful support of St. Paul’s by-the-Sea Episcopal Church. Since 1972, the church has provided its acoustically unmatched, award-winning sanctuary for our concerts and educational outreach programs, in addition to office space for our operations and use of the Parish Hall for our receptions and art exhibits. WWW.SPBTS.NET

Akia Uwanda McDaniel, Chair

Nick Curry, Vice-Chair

M. Elaine Hall, Treasurer

Deborah Baker, Secretary

Dorreen Daly

Katie Davidson

Tonglia Davis

Megan Herrman

MJ Hinson

Michele D. Lee

Aida Ribeiro Mechetti

Marjorie Pardue

Lynne Radcliffe

Grace Raper

Ramesh Shah

Bob Wall

STAFF

Kathy Wallis, Executive Director

Martha Gerding, Associate Director 

Tracy Morris, Director of Educational Programming