Dear music fans, musicians, and dancers,
As of October 9, 2023, we will be shuttering the Sonoma County Dance Beat calendar. We will continue to look for ways to support the music community through our other services, such as dance lessons, event production, and musician/venue matchmaking.
In the spring of 2014, Kevin and I founded Sonoma County Dance Beat because we needed such a resource ourselves. And we knew other dancers, who prefer live music, would appreciate it too.
Over the years we have tried various strategies for monetizing the site and enlisting volunteers, which have been met with limited success. We actually raised more money this year than in prior years, but it still doesn’t begin to pay for our time. Since the pandemic, gathering accurate information to enter into the calendar has been far more time consuming. We are ready to spend our time and money on other pursuits: Kevin’s music and my writing.
We have enjoyed many wonderful experiences through Sonoma County Dance Beat, like dancing for musicians’ music videos, doing dance demos and teaching at private and public events, running Hump Day Jump at Rossi’s 1906, and putting on April Foolery. This is why we’re not ready to scrap Dance Beat entirely. Just the most expensive, time-consuming portion.
We so appreciate all of the expressions of gratitude and the generous support we have received from so many of you. It’s a bittersweet decision for sure. We love you all and we’ll still see you on the dance floor.
Ann & Kevin Hutchinson – Founders, Sonoma County Dance Beat