Margaret Tait, cello (l) and Alison Luedecke, piano (r)
Monday, October 27, 2025
12 PM
Born in Virginia and raised in South Carolina, cellist Margaret Tait joined the San Francisco Symphony in 1974. Her studies were at the North Carolina School of the Arts, the University of Southern California, and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and she holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Music. Although she has been engaged throughout her career as an orchestral musician, she has a deep love for chamber music. In 1979 she helped to found the Aurora String Quartet which was a vital force on the chamber music scene for 22 years. With the Quartet, she performed in London, New York, Tokyo, and maintained a series of compelling concerts in the Bay Area. The Aurora Quartet received two commissioning grants from Chamber Music America, and did West Coast premieres of works by George Tsontakis, George Perle, Benjamin Lees, David MacBride and others. They also performed as concerto soloists with the San Francisco Symphony. On the Naxos label, the Quartet recorded the complete Quartets by Mendelssohn and the two Quartets by Prokofieff.
In 2021, Margaret retired from the San Francisco Symphony and relocated to San Diego. She has continued performing with local chamber orchestras and as a recitalist, most recently with pianist John Wilson. Since meeting Alison Luedecke during concerts with Mainly Mozart, they have performed frequently as a duo with programs planned for the fall of 2025. During the summers, Margaret is a member of the Sun Valley Festival Orchestra in Idaho.
Dr. Alison Luedecke, organ and harpsichord, is passionate about sharing her love of music. She is a founding member of and harpsichordist/organist with San Diego Baroque presenting all Baroque music on period style instruments and is also a founding member and organist with Millennia Consort (Brass Quintet, percussion and organ). As a large ensemble musician she performs with the Mainly Mozart Festival Orchestra, the California Chamber Orchestra and other ensembles. She is active as a solo concert organist and has played in France, Canada, Mexico and Germany. She received the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Organ Performance at the Eastman School of Music as a student of David Craighead. Dr. Luedecke served as University Organist and Artist Teacher of Organ and Harpsichord at the University of Redlands 2017–2021. She is currently serving as Organist and Choir Director at Church of the Nativity, Rancho Santa Fe, for the 9:00 a.m. Sunday Mass and special occasions. In her free time she enjoys warm-water snorkeling, cooking, traveling, exercising and spending quality time with family and friends.
Free concerts at noon every Monday year-round . . . no wonder the Mini-Concerts are the longest-running and one of the most popular classical music series at the library! This series was founded by Glenna Hazleton in 1970 at the Athenaeum, and has been going strong ever since. The concerts feature both local and touring musicians, prize-winning students, university music faculty members, local chamber ensembles. . . and the repertoire also includes jazz, folk, and world music. There are no reservations, no tickets . . . just line up at the side door of the Athenaeum before noon. (Donations are always welcome!) Mini-Concerts take place every Monday at noon and last about an hour.
The concerts will be in person at the Athenaeum Music & Arts Library. There are no physical tickets for these events. Doors open at 11:40 a.m. Last entry is at 12:10 p.m. or once capacity is reached. Seating is first-come; first-served. Reservations are not necessary, but seating is limited.