On the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the June Music Festival, Albert G. Simms wrote, “In 1942 my wife and a group of Albuquerque people, interested in sponsoring music and art in Albuquerque and New Mexico, conceived the idea of the June Music Festival…. Mrs. Simms, with her deep feeling for art and beauty, realized the importance of music in a community, and she wished to make it possible for the people of Albuquerque to hear and enjoy the great and beautiful works written by the great masters in the field of chamber music.”

​Ruth Hanna McCormick Simms died on December 31, 1944. Beginning in 1946, Albert G. Simms sponsored the June Music Festival as a gift to the 

community in memory of his wife. In 1961 the financial responsibility for the

Festival was undertaken by three musicians, Georges Miquelle, Josef Gingold, and Ralph Berkowitz, who formed the nucleus of the performing artists. In 1966 (the 25th season), the June Music Festival became an incorporated body with a Board of Directors assuming the responsibility for the continuance of the Festival.

The organization began sponsoring periodic winter concerts in 1972, and by 1997, the Board of Directors felt the time had come to adopt a new name: Chamber Music Albuquerque (CMA), which better describes the scope of the organization’s programs.

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On June 6, 2022, on the occasion of the June Music Festival's 80th anniversary, the Albuquerque City Council issued a proclamation naming June 2022 "Chamber Music Albuquerque Month."

Now in its 83rd season, Chamber Music Albuquerque continues to bring fine classical ensembles and soloists to the Albuquerque community.