The Winchendon Music Festival, which has made a name for itself as a free world-class event in the small north Worcester County town of about 10,000 people, has announced it does not have the funding to proceed with programming this summer and will reorganize and relaunch once funds are secured.
The festival was founded by musician Andrew Arceci and debuted in 2016. The nonprofit WMF organization has brought internationally renowned musicians from a variety of musical genres including classical, folk, jazz, historical performance, and world music at different venues around town.
“It’s been hard. Unfortunately the festival just doesn’t have the money to procced with Summer 2024,” Arceci said. “Basically we have to reorganize. Rather than shut down we have to step back and reorganize so there will be a future.”
Looking to reschedule
The festival had “a short-list of programs for the summer” that it will now look to schedule later. The goal is to “resume in the fall, possibly the winter.” Another possibility — pending funds — would be a biennial festival (every other year), Arceci said. “I’m confident we will return.”
The festival’s model has been to secure grants, “but if we don’t have the funds we can’t proceed,” he said. It has always been “a balancing act to secure the grants and move forward with plans.” Administration and administrative costs, while not expensive, have been a burden, and WMF does not have an endowment to draw on, Arceci said.
“The festival programs have always been free to the community, which I think is important to maintain, but it’s very difficult to sustain … They are free but they are not free to produce. If attracting international artists, it’s one’s livelihood,” he said of the artists.
The pandemic changed the landscape for many nonprofit arts groups, organizations and performers. “A lot it is emerging from the pandemic. A number of the ensembles I work with are finding different models,” Arceci said.
However, “I’d like to think that even with a shoe-string budget, I think we crated some buzz, and that continues to be exciting,” he said.
Something that could be ‘useful for the community’
Arceci is an internationally acclaimed multi-instrumentalist (including viola da gamba, violone and double bass), concert performer, recording artist, composer/arranger, scholar and teacher (including teaching at Worcester State University for a year).
He has also been the artistic director for the past two years of the prestigious Arcadia Players based in Northampton, but will be stepping down from that position next month due to his heavy traveling schedule as a performer. He is currently dividing his time between living in Boston and Italy.
Arceci has said that he always felt a strong bond with Winchendon although he never lived there. His parents and grandparents are from Winchendon and he has visited the town many times. The Winchendon Music Festival is dedicated to the memory of his father, Dr. Robert J. Arceci (1950-2015), who loved the arts in addition to being an expert pediatric oncologist. Andrew Arceci has previously said that after his father’s death he felt that a music festival in town “seemed like something that could be useful for the community. Boston doesn’t need another series. Or New York.”
The festival went from three concerts in 2016 to a planned fifth year celebration for 2020 of 12 concerts. The concerts were usually held each June prior to the pandemic. “Solo artists, small groups. Nice programs and interesting programs that otherwise wouldn’t be available,” Arceci said of the festival’s programing.
As 2020 dawned, “We had the momentum, we had the trajectory, we had that excitement , and we had the funding to perform 12 programs,” Arceci said.
Hit by the pandemic
The lineup would have included concerts with Italian born pianist and composer Cristiana Pegoraro, Turkish vocalist Burcu Gulec with the Burcu Gulec Quartet, John Arcaro and Band, and singer-songwriter Bill Staines. Staines died in 2021.
But the 2020 and 2021 live in-person concert seasons were canceled because of the pandemic and the festival offered some virtual programing instead. Since the pandemic, the festival has been experimenting with year-round concerts and not all focused on the summer, Arceci said. In April of 2022 live in-person performances resumed with three concerts, a concert in Worcester in November, and a program of four concerts from December into January, 2023.
Last year’s lineups also included two programs in June, and a seven concert series in August. The most recent festival concert was in December when Arceci brought the Arcadia Players to Immaculate Heart of Mary Church.
“Most of the programs have been well-attended,” Arceci said. And the Winchendon Music Festival has remained an international draw. “We have artists inquiring from around the world. People have emailed us if they’re touring the United States looking for a spot which is incredible. I hope to resume that.”
As the festival seeks to reorganize in the current climate, “we’re not unique. Many non-profit organizations have to navigate this,” Arceci said.
“We’ve been lucky that we’ve had a number of foundations and businesses that have supported us.”
Arceci said that over the last several years, the two largest contributors have been the Robinson Broadhurst Foundation and the Gardner Cultural Council, with additional support from the Athol Cultural Council, Beals Memorial Library (Winchendon), Comeau’s Heating — Boiler Services (Winchendon), NETSCOUT — IT Services (Westford), Sparks Real Estate (Winchendon), Templeton Cultural Council, To Each His Own Design — Flowers & Gifts (Winchendon), Winchendon Cultural Council, Winchendon History & Cultural Center, and several individuals.
For more information, visit the Winchendon Music Festival Facebook page.
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