Support The Gilmore

For nearly three decades Gilmore audiences have enjoyed unforgettable performances by some of the legends in classical, jazz and pop music through the Gilmore International Keyboard Festival, Piano Masters Series and Rising Stars Series. None of this would have been possible without the generous support of Gilmore contributors.

Ticket sales cover only half of the cost of presenting these events, and we rely on the charitable gifts of our donors to help make up the difference. The funding that we receive from you means that The Gilmore will be able to continue to offer unparalleled musical experiences for audiences throughout southwest Michigan.

How You Can Help

Individuals can support The Gilmore by making a gift to the annual Contributors Club campaign, which offers benefits to enhance your concert-going experience, or contribute to The Gilmore’s Endowment Fund for a long-term investment. Corporate giving is one of the best investments that a company can make to help preserve the cultural arts while providing excellent business exposure.

What Your Gift Will Support

Presenting Great Artists

• Biennial Festival – In even-numbered years, The Gilmore presents nearly three weeks of extraordinary concerts, lectures, master classes and films, filling more than 35,000 seats in communities across west Michigan.
• Piano Master Series – The Gilmore Piano Masters Series is a presentation of world-renowned pianists in recital outside of the biennial Gilmore International Keyboard Festival. Presented in the beautifully-restored Chenery Auditorium, these concerts are made possible through generous gifts to The Gilmore’s Endowment Fund.
• Rising Stars Series – The Gilmore Rising Stars Series presents outstanding young pianists from around the world to provide Kalamazoo audiences with a taste of tomorrow’s stars of the classical music world. Presented annually since 2000, previous artists have included Lang Lang, Jonathan Biss and Yevgeny Sudbin before they made their international breakthroughs.

Rewarding Great Talent

• Gilmore Artist Award – It is the award coveted by pianists the world over – one that recognizes extraordinary artistry with some of the most generous financial support given in the musical arts.
• Gilmore Young Artist Award – Gilmore Young Artist awards are given biennially to two exceptional young American pianists under the age of 22 who demonstrate the talent and drive to pursue successful performance careers.
• Commissioning New Music – New works commissioned by The Gilmore for the Festival and as part of the Gilmore Young Artist Awards make a lasting contribution to contemporary piano literature and further the careers of promising young artists.
• Making Concerts Accessible – The Gilmore works through area social service agencies to provide free tickets to Festival events and other Gilmore recitals to those less fortunate in our communities.

Education Programs

• Piano Labs – Professional piano teachers hired by The Gilmore give free, twice-weekly lessons during the school day to children who would not otherwise have a chance to study piano.
• Piano Day and Resident Camps – A week-long camp is held at the Sherman Lake YMCA Outdoor Center devoted to piano study consisting of: a day camp that features enrichment activities designed for the early years of piano study, and a resident camp devoted to the intermediate through advanced piano student.
• KeysFest – The annual day-long piano festival for piano students of all levels in grades 1–12 in the greater Battle Creek and Kalamazoo areas to perform and receive instruction from professional pianists and/or educators.
• Student Tickets – Due to the generous support of our donors, full-time students can purchase advance tickets to most Gilmore events for just $5! This is a real student discount that applies to any available seat in the venue.
• Bravo – A collaboration of several Kalamazoo arts organizations that work together to recruit and audition local high school-aged musical talent for a live performance twice each year that is recorded and later broadcast.