The
birth
of
the
Placitas
Artist
Series
came
about
as
a
result
of
the
happy
confluence
of
a
couple
of
timely
events
as
well
as
the
vision
and eager participation of several Placitas folks.
In
1984
the
Las
Placitas
Presbyterian
Church
completed
its
new
sanctuary
and
the
pastor
and
congregation
were
eager
to
promote
and
share
it
with
the
larger
Placitas
community.
One
concert
had
been held there and the acoustics proved to be very fine indeed.
Around
the
same
time
a
group
of
string
musicians
recently
arrived
in
Albuquerque
from
Mexico
formed
what
became
the
Helios
String
Quartet
and
began
looking
for
performance
opportunities.
The
wife
of
the
organizing
cellist
was
a
reporter
with
The
Albuquerque
Journal
with
friends
in
Placitas,
who
suggested
she
interview
the
pastor
of
the
church
for
a
story
idea.
The
resulting
article
was
“Placitas
Church
Serves
as
Hub:
Varied
Activities
Foster
Spirit
of
Community.”
The
other
result
of
that
interview
was an idea: a Helios String Quartet concert in the new sanctuary!
The
success
of
that
concert
seemed
to
beg
for
more
of
the
same
and
a
committee
was
formed
to
set
in
motion
a
whole
series
for
the
following
season.
The
pastor,
the
church
treasurer,
the
church
music
director,
the
cellist,
the
friend,
and
a
local
artist
organized
themselves
into
the
first
board
of
directors,
chose
a
name,
wrote
by-laws
and
planned
the
concerts.
The
pre-existing
local
art
shows
in
the
church’s
fellowship
hall
would
be
promoted
alongside
the concerts and would later be incorporated into PAS itself.
After
its
first
season
PAS
incorporated
as
a
not-for-profit
501(c)3,
wholly
independent
of
the
church.
PAS
is
currently
celebrating
its
thirty-second season!
* * *
Sally Curro is a founding member of the Placitas Artists Series and
continues to serve the organization as a board member emeritus
