Celebrating CAMA's Centennial: Bringing the World's Finest Classical Music to Santa Barbara.

"It's always been a great pleasure for me to perform on the CAMA series, and I'm looking forward to many more visits. I send you my heartiest congratulations on your centennial season. Bravo!" -Itzhak Perlman, Co-Chair, CAMA Centennial Honorary Artists Council // "Celebrating CAMA's Centennial: Bringing the World's Finest Classical Music to Santa Barbara" is the first thoroughly researched history of Community Arts Music Association, among the oldest presenters of classical music in the United States. // Santa Barbara, California's perhaps surprising status as a classical music capital is no accident-it is the result of the concerted efforts of a cadre of visionary and community-minded arts patrons who came together following World War I to champion and fund concerts by community based and internationally established talent. Among these early supporters of the movement to establish great music in Santa Barbara were luminaries of classical music, including Sir Arthur Bliss, Henry Eichheim, Sir Donald Francis Tovey, Louis Persinger, and more. // Using vintage photographs and press clippings, this fascinating history is of immense value to both curious locals and to historians worldwide, as CAMA's history intersects the history of classical music itself, and tells a story of exceptional-perhaps unparalleled-community engagement with music that is nothing short of an inspiration. From the dedicated volunteer board members who ran CAMA for decades to patrons who footed the bills, they all had one goal-bringing the world's finest music to Santa Barbara. // Engagingly written by historian Hattie Beresford and with a foreword by internationally acclaimed concert pianist Stephen Hough, "Celebrating CAMA's Centennial" is a fast-paced read that brings together all the unique strands that led to the success of CAMA. Readers today and for generations to come will find great value in this compelling history!