Nestled between the mountains and water, Bellingham, Washington’s spectacular natural beauty provides the ideal backdrop for the celebration of classical music. In 1993, noted American conductor Michael Palmer and renowned cellist, Robert Sylvester, who was at that time Dean of The College of Fine and Performing Arts and Director of Cultural Affairs of Western Washington University, recognized the yearning of the community of Bellingham to hear live classical music of the highest caliber and their willingness to support it, and founded the Bellingham Festival of Music. The dedicated group of volunteers who formed the first Board of Directors shared their vision and tirelessly built the financial and civic support required to bring the Festival into existence. Under the baton of founding Artistic Director Maestro Palmer, the Festival became an annual tradition of presenting world class soloists in summer programs of classical music, performed by an orchestra composed of principal-chair musicians drawn from orchestras across North America. Over the years, the Festival has attracted an array of internationally celebrated guest artists to join the Festival Orchestra and Chorus to create unforgettable musical experiences for a generation of audiences. Such luminaries as violinists Sarah Chang and Joshua Bell, guitarist Pepe Romero, Metropolitan Opera stars Frederica von Stade and Heidi Grant-Murphy, and pianists Alicia de Larrocha and Garrick Ohlsson, among others, have thrilled Festival audiences with their extraordinary performances and have put Bellingham on the musical map of America.