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Homepage > Press Releases > Mid-Atlantic Symphony Orchestra Honors Don Buxton During Anniversary Year
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 19, 2018
CONTACT: Don Buxton 410 819-0380
or Amy Steward 410-829-0436
At part of its 20th Anniversary Concert Season, “Reaching Ever Higher,” the Mid-Atlantic Symphony Orchestra (MSO) recently honored its founding conductor, Donald C. Buxton. The MSO performed its first concert, under the direction of Music Director Donald C. Buxton, at the Ocean City (Maryland) Convention Center on November 21, 1997. Three concerts would be held at the Convention Center during the 1997-1998 Season.
According to MSO President Jeffrey Parker, Maestro Buxton conducted the orchestra until June 2005. Under his tutelage the MSO established itself as the archetypal provider of quality music throughout the multistate peninsula. The guest conductor for the season finale in April 2005 was Julien Benichou, who later assumed the role of MSO Music Director.
Benichou comments, “It is a great joy being able to honor Donald Buxton for all of his amazing work for the Mid-Atlantic Symphony Orchestra. Don has done so much for the musical life of the area and we are lucky to have him as our founding Music Director.”
Buxton is currently the executive director of Chesapeake Music, an organization he founded initially as The Eastern Shore Chamber Music Festival in 1985 with colleagues Marcy Rosen and Lawrie Bloom, who now serve as the organization’s artistic directors. The organization changed its name in 2015 to reflect the new breadth of its reach in the region. Chesapeake Music presents over 30 live music events throughout the year in both the genres of jazz and chamber music. The organization exports something of the Chesapeake’s uniqueness to audiences and to musicians worldwide who take part in its annual Chesapeake Chamber Music Festival every June, the Monty Alexander Jazz Festival every Labor Day weekend, a biennial international Chesapeake Chamber Music Competition, and its new concert series. In addition, Chesapeake Music’s YouthReach Program works with area schools to bring a greater exposure of classical and jazz music to area students and its First Strings Program continues to inspire and excite 3rd and 4th graders in our area schools by introducing them to the violin.
Buxton’s reach into the musical community has extended far beyond his current role as Executive Director of Chesapeake Music. He was the Associate conductor of the Talbot Chamber Orchestra in the mid-1980s; became Music Director of the Dover Symphony in 1989 (which he still maintains); was faculty at Washington College in Chestertown; and has served on numerous nonprofit boards, including the Talbot County Arts Council and Maryland State Arts Council. In addition, he was an early influencer on the Avalon Theater/Foundation Board. He also serves on Vestry and sings regularly in the choir of Christ Episcopal Church in St. Michaels.
Buxton comments on his most recent honor, “It has been a privilege through my various roles in the community to be able to enrich the musical life of the Chesapeake region by delighting today’s audiences and developing tomorrow’s. My start with the Mid-Atlantic Symphony and now my role with Chesapeake Music continues to challenge me as we find new avenues to introduce residents and visitors alike to all types of musical experiences. The arts are alive and well on the Eastern Shore.”
Chesapeake Music, a non-profit organization, offers premier quality performances at affordable prices to an ever-growing regional audience. For further information about Chesapeake Music, visit chesapeakemusic.org or call 410-819-0380.
Caption: Donald C. Buxton, Executive Director of Chesapeake Music, recently received a certificate of recognition from the Maryland Senate at a concert of the Mid-Atlantic Symphony in Easton, MD. Buxton founded the MSO in 1997 and served as its conductor until 2005. Pictured left to right are Buxton and Lissa Einhon, Legislative Aide to Senator Addie Eckardt.Chesapeake Music 2019 ©
114 N. Washington St., Suite 20 -21 | PO Box 461 | Easton, MD 21601 | Phone: 410-819-0380 | info@chesapeakemusic.org
