It is reported that the occasional Orchestra of New Spain concert-goer has actually said, "Oh I've heard them," as if that one concert had been the sum total on the subject. May I refer you to the contents of this season brochure and the variety that we offer this season: Renaissance music from Valencia, flamenco with Conté de Loyo Flamenco Theatre, the most perfect room in Dallas for Baroque music, and a splendid international celebration.

Let's start with the honors of that celebration. On February 10 the Orchestra plays at the National Gallery in Washington, the principal event of the U. S. State Department's celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Fulbright Program in Spain. I am honored to have received two Senior Research Fellowships in the program. We invite you to join us in Dallas on the 8th, place TBA.

Virtually all the secular, and much of the sacred, Spanish music that we perform contains dance rhythms - as does so much of the secular music of the Classical period. This season we tackle the most visible Spanish rhythmic form, flamenco (the word refers to the Flemish - language or people of northern Belgium) with the well known Conté de Loyo Flamenco Theatre.

We are pleased to share our annual Christmas concert this year with the French-American Chamber of Commerce. You are invited to join them for a gala reception around our December 4 concert of French and Spanish music for the season.

Finally, we want to thank the board members of the Eugene McDermott Foundation for the Challenge they posed to us last year and which, with the matching funds contributed by so many of you, has netted us 200,000 new dollars to build toward our 20th anniversary season in 2008-09. The results of this funding are increased rehearsal time, increased touring, enhanced operation, and a view to the long term which we were simply unable to entertain before this grant. From our perspective, it is the foresight of such foundation mecenas, their broad encouragement of culture, and their specific interest in emerging institutions that make possible our work and inspire us to continue our development.

Thank all of you who have participated in this signal operation. Oh, and remember that we'd like you to continue your generosity this season, and in coming seasons.

- Grover Wilkins 3d