Artist Series Concerts of Sarasota Welcomes Four New Board Members
Jean Abrams, Michael Beitzinger, Linda Cerone and Olivia Swaan have joined the board of Artist Series Concerts of Sarasota.
(Sarasota, Florida) John Fischer, managing director of Artist Series Concerts of Sarasota, announced today that the board has welcomed four new members.
Michael Beitzinger is vice president at Iberia Bank and is also manager of the bank’s Main Street branch in downtown Sarasota. He has been in banking for over 25 years and previously worked for financial institutions in Mishawaka and South Bend, IN. Beitzinger served as the assistant director of the Department of Community and Economic Development for the City of South Bend, where he headed up several revolving loan funds, including the Small Business Administration 504 loan program. In this region, Beitzinger is the president of the Notre Dame Club of Greater Sarasota and is chair of the Downtown Sarasota Alliance (DSA). He is also active in the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce and has served on the finance committee for the Suncoast Partnership to End Homelessness. Beitzinger serves as an instructor and mentor at Harvest House, teaching financial literacy and mentoring people on the basics of banking and money management. He is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame and is also a graduate of the Sarasota Chamber of Commerce Leadership Class of 2011.
Linda Cerone, a graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music, is professor emeritus at the Cleveland Institute of Music where she served as a professor of conservatory violin for 34 years, and was also artistic director of the preparatory violin department. Cerone has appeared both in recital and as soloist with orchestras throughout the U.S., and was principal second violin of the Dartmouth Festival Orchestra. She served on the faculty of the Oberlin College Conservatory, was professor of violin at the New School in Philadelphia and, for 19 years, was a member of the faculty at the Meadowmount School of Music. She was a co-founder of the ENCORE School for Strings, where she co-directed and served as faculty member for 24 years. A participant in the St. Barts Music Festival, Cerone has served as adjudicator and on the advisory boards of national competitions. Her former students hold important positions in orchestras throughout the world and enjoy successful careers in chamber ensembles and as touring soloists.
Olivia Swaan was born in Dublin, Ireland, where at the age of 12 she studied the harp at the Irish College of Music. Upon apprenticeship, she joined the famous Bunratty Castle Singers where she quickly became lead harpist/singer, entertaining visitors from all over the world. She toured extensively throughout Europe and the United States. Marriage took Olivia to the Netherlands where she continued her career, playing and singing in some of the most beautiful castles and estate mansions with numerous radio and television appearances in both the Netherlands and Germany. She also recorded her first album “Song for a Winter’s Night” with the EMI record label. Swaan now resides in Sarasota where she became a permanent resident in 2002 and a U.S. citizen in 2009. It is here she recorded her second album, “The Swan in the Evening,” and continues to perform at many functions in the area.
Jean Abrams served as treasurer of the Artist Series Concert’s board for several years. She served as treasurer of the Friends of the Sarasota Orchestra for more than a decade. In addition, she’s lent her energies to the Women’s Resource Center of Sarasota County and the Sarasota Ballet.
” Artist Series Concert’s board of trustees is now stronger than ever with the addition of Linda, Jean, Olivia and Michael,” says Edward Alley, ACS’s board chair. “These four outstanding individuals join a team of dedicated people who are united in their commitment to support the needs of our organization, which represents a vital part of the economic, cultural and social fabric of the region.”
Artist Series Concerts of Sarasota board of trustees includes Edward Alley, chair; Jean Abrams, Mike Beitzinger, Ray Broth, Linda Cerone, Stephen Fancher, John Fischer, Toni Goldberg, Joseph Holt, Lee Dougherty Ross, Barbara Staton, Joan Suddarth, Olivia Swaan and Russ Wiltshire.
For more information about Artist Series Concerts of Sarasota, visit www.artistseriesconcerts.org or call 941-306-1202.
Artist Series Concerts of Sarasota
Artist Series Concerts of Sarasota was formed in 1996 as the Artist Series of Sarasota. The group is a non-profit corporation based in Sarasota, FL, that prides itself on presenting several major national and international varieties of concert, opera, orchestral, Broadway and film performances throughout their season. The majority of the performances are staged at the restored Historic Asolo Theater at The Ringling.
