Maryanne Tagney and David Jones

Town Hall runs on the foundation of over 3,500 member households that renew their support each year and we’d like to introduce you to one of these households.

You have been Town Hall donors since 2011. What initially attracted you to Town Hall and what keeps you engaged year after year?

As happens with many organizations, David and I initially made contact with Town Hall through a friend who was already involved—I think it was Stephanie Solien. I had no idea the organization existed when we lived outside the city but after moving to Seattle in 2010, Town Hall became one of our favorite discoveries.

You are patrons of our Town Music Series. What keeps you coming back? Is there anything that Town Music offers that you can’t find elsewhere in Seattle?

The Town Music Series was offered to us as one of the programs we could choose to support. David and I are both interested in music, so it seemed like a good fit. Since that time we have both learned a lot about new music and found we appreciate it much more than we used to. I don’t know of other venues that offer this eclectic mix in such an intimate setting, with often real interaction between the performer and the audience.

You have supported our yearly Town Hall Commission for the past 5 years. Why do you think it is so important to support the creation of new music?

Supporting the commissioning of new music is very exciting for us. It is an opportunity we never expected to have and we appreciate it—I have our signed copies of the scores on display in my office! Some members of my family are professional musicians and I know how hard they work and how little many of them get paid. So when they branch out into the world of composing it is great to be able to support them. Music is a very dynamic art—it is constantly evolving—so we get to enjoy not just the music handed down from centuries past but also the artistic expressions of today and maybe tomorrow. Music, like smell, is very evocative—it engages the senses and the memory. A certain piece of music can instantly transport us back to a certain time in our lives. By supporting new music we are expanding that reach forward to future listeners who will find meaning and connection in it.

You are not only very generous donors to Town Hall, but you have also supported our annual Talk of the Town gala as dinner hosts—twice now. What is a highlight from this experience and what made you decide to host a second time?

We hosted a second time because Wier asked us! We said yes because we really enjoyed hosting Talk of the Town the first time—luckily we had just as good a time last month on our second go-round. Hosting Talk of the Town is a great way to combine supporting a cause we care about with meeting new people, reacquainting ourselves with others and having fun! The chefs are always so interesting and produce amazing food—and the Town Hall staff is great to work with, too.