Salt Bay Chamberfest (SBC), a highly regarded and popular Maine chamber music festival held annually in Damariscotta, has been approved by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to receive a $20,000 Grant for Arts Projects award. The funds will further SBC’s mission to present world-class music in Midcoast Maine and will provide important support for this year’s festival, to be held Aug. 5-17. Entitled “Music in Blue,” the summertime series of concerts and community events will be a celebration of the organization’s milestone 30th anniversary.

“The NEA is delighted to announce this grant to Salt Bay Chamberfest, which is helping contribute to the strength and well-being of the arts sector and local community,” said National Endowment for the Arts Chair Maria Rosario Jackson, PhD. “We are pleased to be able to support this community and help create an environment where all people have the opportunity to live artful lives.”

SBC Artistic and Executive Director Wilhelmina Smith noted that everyone involved with the festival is “so grateful to receive such a large and prestigious award. It allows us to celebrate and continue our 30-year history of reaching audiences throughout the region with high-quality music and meaningful arts engagement.”

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree, Ranking Member of the Appropriations Subcommittee that oversees funding for the National Endowment for the Arts, observed that “Salt Bay Chamberfest has enriched Midcoast Maine communities through music, art, and culture for decades. Thanks in part to this federal grant, this year’s 30th anniversary season is sure to be one for the books!”

SBC’s Music in Blue 30th anniversary festival is among the NEA’s 958 Grants for Arts Projects awards totaling more than $27.1 million. They were announced as part of its first round of fiscal year 2024 grants, given to organizations around the country.

For more information about SBC and “Music in Blue,” visit saltbaychamberfest.org. For more information on other projects included in the National Endowment for the Arts grant announcement, visit arts.gov/news.