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Downtown Chamber Series was founded in 2000 by musicians seeking a new approach to live chamber music in Phoenix, Arizona. Our concerts are held amidst visual art and feature six programs a year, exploring a wide diversity of music and instruments including strings, woodwinds, brass and percussion. The concerts are always unique, changing with different venues, musicians, and exhibitions. We have featured over 200 different musicians and the works of countless visual artists in our city, and have twice won the Mayor's Arts Award for Best Performing Arts Organization. A major goal of DCS is to keep live music affordable, $25 a ticket, with free admission to full-time students. The concertgoers, musicians, and committed visual artists in our community have defined this series, giving all involved a sense of place and pride in our city. DCS is now a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Join us!

Board of Directors
Robert Simonds, President
Benjamin Baer, Secretary
Becky Bell Ballard, Treasurer
Michael Fiflis
Dario Miranda

Advisory Board
Jen Rogers

Executive and Artistic Director

Mark Dix

Founder and Executive Director of the Downtown Chamber Series, violist Mark Dix has been a Phoenix Symphony member, chamber musician and arts advocate in Arizona since 1995. Born in Colorado, he began studying music and visual art at age 6. He obtained his Bachelor's from the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, WA and his Master’s from the Manhattan School of Music in New York. Mark was inspired to develop this series by the relentless commitment of Phoenix gallery owners, by projects he experienced in SoHo in New York, and by the boundless creativity of his late artist father and brother. Community engagement projects are also his focus, winning the Ford Award for programs he built with The Phoenix Symphony in local schools and Alzheimer’s care facilities. During the Covid pandemic he organized performances for our medical providers on break at vaccination sites, as well as DCS performances at Banner Nursing Summits addressing career fatigue. Mark spends his spare time with his wife Holly and their combined household of five kids, as well as laboring on their historic houses in Phoenix and Twin Lakes, Colorado.

Mark Dix