By Ann Smith
Reporter

Longtime Idyllwild resident and musician Ken Dahleen will open the 2021 season of the Idyllwild Summer Concert Series (ISCS) July 8.

As per a press release issued by Dahleen, concerts are scheduled for eight Thursdays in July and August from 6:15 to 8:30 p.m. and will be held at the Butterfield Amphitheater located at 54201 Ridgeview Dr. in Idyllwild.

He has owned property in the community since 1975. Marshall Smith previously reported, Dahleen and his board of directors have been providing free summer concerts since 2000 when Pete Capparelli and Vic Sirkin donated what is now the Village Centre shopping mall property for the first concert season. “We started with four concerts that year,” said Dahleen. “For our first concert we had about 200 people and over that summer the number of attendees grew. We knew then, people were interested,” as quoted by Smith for the Town Crier, June 25, 2013.

According to an Aug. 6, 2013 Town Crier article by JP Crumrine, “In 2000, Ken met with some local people and secured funding to offer a summer concert series. Big Band highlighted the first year of the ISCS, when only four concerts were performed.”

The Big Band sound was welcomed by Idyllwild residents and the free concerts were well attended. The ISCS will be hosted at the Butterfield Amphitheater. With the state now out of full lock down from COVID-19, the summer concert series is sure to be a welcome reprieve from the isolation many have endured.

In addition to producing this festival, Dahleen has played saxophone professionally for decades, with his own Big Band, other bands throughout the area, and in concerts and jazz ensembles.

On tap for this summer are Sherry Williams Quintet, Lisa and the Country Gents, Jennifer Singer (The Las Vegas show), The Topics, U.S. Marine Corps Band, The Big Band Staff, The Ghost Notes and Blue Breeze Band. ISCS is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, raising money as it goes. Fundraising is always a challenge, but the nonprofit has managed over the years to meet the goal by the end of each series.

This year’s budget is $34,575. No funds had been raised as of press time.

Sponsorships and donations are a vital component to keeping this legacy going. Each year, Dahleen and board begin the season with insufficient cash to fund the series. They depend on the generosity of concert patrons to make up the budget deficit. Contributions to help fund the series can be sent to P.O. Box 1542, Idyllwild, CA 92549.