Camden Archambeau stands with Margy Burroughs, his sponsor of two years in the Bowdoin International Music Festival. The duo wrapped up the 60th year of the chamber music season last week. Kristian Moravec / The Times Record

As the Bowdoin International Music Festival winds down from its 60th anniversary this summer, some participants — namely a music student and his sponsor — marked their second year of participating in the program.

Brunswick resident Margy Burroughs sponsored cellist Camden Archambeau for a second year this summer. With Archambeau off to Julliard in the fall, they now reflect on their time in the program and Brunswick’s arts scene.

This Q&A has been edited for length and clarity.

Margy, can you tell us a little bit about yourself? You said you moved here 17 years ago.

Margy: I wanted to be in a college community, and I wanted to live in a community that had good cultural opportunities close by. And I found all of that here and moved here [from Cape Cod] not knowing a single person.

And literally, the second night I was here, on June 22, I attended a BIMF concert and sat next to an absolutely delightful older couple, and we started chatting. I said, “Wow, this is so nice, I don’t know anybody in town.” And we became friends. I just slowly got involved with the festival as well as with Maine State Music Theatre.

Over time, I’ve taken it to the point where I support a student for the full six weeks for everything. And it’s just a joy to be able to do it. And I’ve been really lucky, because I’ve had this guy for two years now, and he may be sick of me, but I’m not sick of him.

What about you, Camden? What’s your background?

Camden: I grew up in Connecticut, and I did my undergrad at Harvard and a dual degree with the New England Conservatory, and I’ll be at Juilliard in the fall for my masters.

I came to the festival for the first time last year because my teacher said [I] should really look into trying to be a fellow here — it’s fully supported, and you can you have a lot of freedom to pursue your own projects.

So I applied, and I’m very happy I did. I have a background in doing a lot of chamber music, and so I was excited about this place because there are so many great quartets and younger quartets that come through here. I was really excited about coming here and just being immersed in that.

Do you have a background in music, Margy?

Margy (laughing): No. Well, it’s really weird, because I’ve always been a big orchestra person. I love orchestra music.

I always grew up with music around me. I grew up in Cleveland. We had a great Cleveland symphony orchestra and I used to go, even as a fairly young person. I [also] had an auntie who lived in New York City, and she never had children, and everyone was married [so] she had lots of nieces and nephews, and she would invite her special ones to come and spend a long weekend in New York.

And she would take us to everything, the ballet, the Met, the Philharmonic, you know, all that kind of stuff. And that’s really where I grew to love music in a big way. But can I play it? Can I sing? Can I sing on tune? Nope, but I love it.

Camden Archambeau plays the cello in an ensemble at the Bowdoin International Music Festival this summer. Courtesy of Camden Archambeau

But what about you, Camden? What brought you to music?

Camden: My mom grew up in a somewhat musical house. So when I was a toddler, I guess I was singing to myself, and she thought, “You know, we could do something productive with this.”

She took me to a music school and I walked around. I got to see the different lessons going on. I hated the violin. I didn’t love the piano. Then I saw the cello class and I heard the cello and I was like, “I gotta do that.”

So when I was 5, I picked up the cello for the first time and I’ve loved it. I do more than just cello now — I do some conducting as well. I teach a lot.

Can you guys go into detail on how you first met in person? Was it at the sponsor brunch that the festival holds?

Margy: I remember walking in [to the brunch]. I think I had seen his picture on the website, because they show pictures and biographies.

I’m a shy person — I don’t meet people very well, I don’t converse very well, but I walked into the room at the [Noble] hotel, and I saw somebody who, from the back, sort of looked like Camden. I just walked up to him, and I said, “Are you Camden?” and he said, “No, I’m not, but he’s right over there.” And there he was.

So you’re paired up, you go to your table, and you start yik-yakking, go get your breakfast and carry on. Then we exchanged contact information. I always would try to go to anything that he was playing in. I continued to do that this year.

Camden: They asked me to talk about my experience a little bit at the sponsor brunch this year. And I realized one of the things that I really loved about being here last year, and has really continued to grow this year, is the relationship that the fellows have with the sponsors and the regular audience members.

Margy and I have gone out for meals, and we’ve gone to the parks and seen a lot. The friendship that we have actually is encouraging as a performer, because you know that you’re going in to see friendly faces in the audience.

Margy: The festival is a fabulous community in and of itself, but [especially] because of the way it reaches out. I mean, they perform in breweries, at old folks homes, retirement centers.

Also, some people go to the festival as just part of their daily routine. Lot of people, really, they will spend four, five or six hours there in a day, just because they it’s so wonderful and they want to support it.

Camden Archambeau performs on the cello at BIMF. Courtesy of Camden Archambeau

In terms of your musical career, what else is next, Camden?

Camden: Well, I’ve been doing some conducting. I’m an assistant conductor with Boston Youth Symphony. I think that path has been maybe not competing with cello, but certainly a parallel thing that I’d like to pursue.

I’d like to do a lot more chamber music down the road. I’d like to someday, in the distant future, maybe have a festival or run a festival and take my vision and apply it to a place that might not have had this kind of infrastructure. Someday I’d like to be just a director of some sort. But for now — cellist, conductor, in school.

Margy (laughing): Not much.

Margy, I know you said you’d like to continue sponsoring. Do you have any other projects on the horizon?

Margy: Well, I do a lot of work with Maine State Music Theatre. They don’t have a sponsorship program because it’s an entirely different kind of set up.

But that’s been the two of them — the festival and music theater have [been] my primary focus ever since I’ve moved here. So, I hope to be able to continue to do what I can for as long as I can for both of ’em, in whatever way they need me — if they need me.