Our Purpose
We are a group of philanthropic professional and semi-professional musicians. We are eleven women and five men.We sing, dance, play guitar, autoharp, flute, banjo, mandolin, banjolele, harmonica, and percussion. We mix and match. Sometimes there are four of us. Sometimes there are ten of us. Our various performances are arranged around our busy lives and the particular needs of each audience.
As a “family” of musicians, we are privileged and find great joy in lifting the spirits of our listeners through our songs and stories. Connecting with audiences is vital to us. Thank you notes similar to this one say it all for us:
“Dear Anne – Your group had our members spellbound this past Tuesday. Thank you. I loved the short history lesson, your beautiful voices, and how you tell the story in song, dance, and words.”
Beyond that, we are especially proud of the charitable donations AND the free performances we have given through our music. Commencing 17 years ago and through to today, cash donations total $167,000.
Our policy of donating all our proceeds to charities began when the audience began literally throwing money at us after our first performance! Visit our CHARITIES page for a list of our charities.
Our History
Inception
In 2003, Anne Destabelle was invited to offer a 10 minute musical offering to the Norris Theatre’s ACT II support group. Anne selected songs from her folk singing in the 1960’s, accompanied herself on guitar, and created a short theatre piece with the very talented Joan Perkins and her autoharp. They were a two-woman hit. An exciting demand for performances followed.
Anne expanded the group to include Gay Durward (composer of our Piecin’ theme song) and Ann Ehrenclou. Our first performance, Piecin’ It Together, was on August 28, 2004, at Palos Verdes Malaga Library. (Standing Room Only!).
Journey Thus Far
Diana Brownson joined us with her banjolele, mandolin and harmonica. Faye Schwartz joined when our cardboard “quilts” for Piecin’ It Together evolved into 16 stunning quilts created by Nancy Veits’s Sew What Quilters.
When we added our Songs and Stories of Stephen Foster and our Romp Through the American Revolution, we brought in Jim Jones and his tenor banjo and guitar. Joe Arnett joined us as well. In 2014, we added our St. Patrick’s Celebration, our Patriotic Celebration, Kathie Ryel and Fay Owen. We also added dance with the hugely talented Liz Cantine. Claire Wagner brought us her banjo and mandolin. We welcomed Cherie Turner in 2019.
In 2020, we added Songs of Love and Other Predicaments, joyfully welcoming three more men to the group, Martin Ageson, Paul Maynard and Steve Schlegel. They join us in our other productions as well, including our Songs of the Southwest and our Holiday Singalong.
On June 26, 2021, we will debut From Battles to Ballots - A Century of Struggle for Woman Suffrage. We have added Gloria Godet and Deborah Strayhand to our cast as we share 27 stories of women of color along with other famous American heroines.
Our Performances
For over 2,000 performances, we have toured Southern California, including the South Bay, The San Fernando Valley, Lancaster, Oxnard, Palm Springs, and Idyllwild.
We sing in libraries, museums, school auditoriums, churches, restaurants and even living rooms. For five years in a row we performed at the Lemon Lily Festival in Idyllwild, CA. On four occasions, we performed in the magnificent Wayfarers Chapel in Palos Verdes, donating all proceeds to the Chapel and other charities.
Our NINE programs appeal to men, women, young adults and children - people of all backgrounds and interests. All programs can be tailored from 30 minutes to an hour, depending on audience timing requirements.
Here is a representative sample of our audiences:
- The American Association of University Women (AAUW)
- PEO (Philanthropic Education Organization)
- Wayfarers Chapel
- Torrance Memorial Hospital
- Little Company of Mary Hospital
- The Palos Verdes Men’s Breakfast Club
- The Peninsula Symphony
- The Little Fish Theatre in San Pedro
- Walk on the Wild Side, Palos Verdes
- Palos Verdes Peninsula Village
- L.A. Philharmonic support groups
- Norris Theatre’s Bravo and ACT II Support Groups
- Retired teachers support groups
Our Awards
The City of Torrance honored us with its Excellence in Arts in Music Award for 2017. Also, in 2018, the City of Torrance gifted us with a video prepared in our honor. For more information on this award and the video, go to our Awards and Testimonials page.
In 2020, the Palos Verdes Peninsula Coordinating Council selected us to receive its Community Service Award. For more information on this award, go to our Awards and Testimonials page.