CMK Arnold Draper Fund for Young Artists – A Musical Legacy

Chamber Music Kelowna recognizes the financial challenges young musicians may face as they strive
to finish their studies and launch a professional performing career. To this end, CMK
announced the creation of the Chamber Music Kelowna Arnold Draper Fund for Young Artists with
the Central Okanagan Foundation in 2020. The income from this fund will assist young musicians who are
pursuing a career in classical music. 

Arnold Draper enjoyed a celebrated career as a music professor and accompanist in Cardiff, Wales before coming to the Okanagan in the late 1980s.  Throughout his long career as teacher, coach and performer, he took particular joy in supporting young musicians. To honour Arnold and his outstanding legacy, the Chamber Music Kelowna Society (CMKS) has established the Arnold Draper Fund for young artists, an endowment fund administered by the Central Okanagan Foundation (COF).  The fund will support an annual award to young pre-professional or professional musicians from the Okanagan beginning in 2024. 

Since CMKS first announced the fund in 2020 in honour of Arnold’s 80^th birthday, contributions from individual donors and fundraising events have reached almost $15,000 as of August 2022. These donations are matched at 50% by CMK’s own contribution from our Society’s Members’ Surplus, for a total of over $22,000 raised to date.

Contributions received plus matching funds are remitted at least annually by CMKS to COF. COF is responsible for investing the Fund and, at our instruction, is reinvesting earnings to increase the total in the Fund as quickly as possible.

Encouraged by the positive response from donors, the Board of CMKS has increased the total funds we will make available to match contributions to $20,000. If this total amount is matched over the next few years (as we are confident it will be), the balance in the fund will exceed $60,000, a level at which we would feel highly confident to begin award distributions.

An awards committee, which will include the Artistic Director of Chamber Music Kelowna, will define the criteria for applications and publicize the award. We look forward to introducing the first winner to our audiences. 

Sincere thanks to all who have helped this very young endowment reach a significant level in such a short time.  Through your contributions and volunteer efforts, Arnold Draper’s support for young Okanagan musicians will continue for many years to come.

If you would like to honour Arnold and help grow this endowment fund by holding your own fundraising event or activity, please get in touch with us. Call Magda Mutch at 250.215.5142, or contact her via email at mcm2901@gmail.com.

CMK gratefully acknowledges the generosity of the following donors who have contributed to date to the Arnold Draper Award for Young Artists:

If you would like to support the CMK Arnold Draper Award Fund for Young Artists, please click on the DONATE button to be taken to our secure donation page through our partner, Canada Helps, and click on the fund in the drop-down menu. A tax receipt for your gift will be generated automatically and sent to your email address.

Alternatively, you can send your cheque or money order payable to CMK to:

Chamber Music Kelowna
PO Box 25093, Mission Park
Kelowna, BC   V1W 3Y2

If sending your gift by mail, please note Arnold Draper Fund on your cheque.

Read more about Arnold Draper…