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Valkyrie’s ride high in the Santa Fe air | Sharps & Flatirons
Santa Fe Opera continues its exploration of Wagner’s music dramas By Peter Alexander Aug. 11 at 5:35 p.m. Editor’s Note: This is one of several posts covering four of the five operas presented this year at the Santa Fe Opera. Die Walküre, the last of the Santa Fe Opera productions I saw this summer (Aug.…
Young love in the 1920s | Sharps & Flatirons
Thoroughly enjoyable Bohème at the Santa Fe Opera By Peter Alexander Aug. 11 at 10:35 a.m. Editor’s Note: This is one of several posts covering four of the five operas presented this year at the Santa Fe Opera. Santa Fe Opera’s production of Puccini's La Bohème (seen Aug. 6) opens on a standard first-act set:…
“Musically gripping” Rigoletto | Sharps & Flatirons
Santa Fe Opera presents carnivalesque production of Verdi’s masterpiece By Peter Alexander Aug. 11 at 1:45 p.m. Editor’s Note: This is one of several posts covering four of the five operas presented this year at the Santa Fe Opera. Santa Fe’s new production of Verdi’s Rigoletto opens on a carnivalesque scene: a chorus of courtiers…
Maybe a ghost story in Santa Fe | Sharps & Flatirons
Britten’s The Turn of the Screw in a hauntingly ambiguous production By Peter Alexander Aug. 10 at 1:15 p.m. Editor’s Note: This is one of several posts covering four of the five operas presented this year at the Santa Fe Opera. Benjamin Britten’s The Turn of the Screw is a challenging opera to produce. Based…
Don’t wait for me, or for Godot | Sharps & Flatirons
Time to tend the garden and try to make some sense of life By Peter Alexander July 30 at 12 noon I am writing this post to let you know that at the end of the summer I will give up my work on Sharpsandflatirons.com. My reviews of the 2025 summer season at the Santa…
Two Ninths add up to grand finale at CMF | Sharps & Flatirons
Peter Oudjian to conduct famous last symphonies by Beethoven and Mahler By Peter Alexander July 26 at 5:00 p.m. Music director Peter Oundjian will conclude the 49th Colorado Music Festival (CMF) this week with performances of two very different ninth symphonies. CMF Music director Peter Oundjian conducting the CMF Festival Orchestra Thursday and Friday will…
From American ballet to Shakespearean lovers | Sharps & Flatirons
Anne Akiko Meyers plays moving new work by Eric Whitacre at CMF By Peter Alexander July 18 at 1:20 a.m. The Colorado Music Festival Orchestra presented a program of deeply expressive music last night (July 17), including a new work for violin and string orchestra by the American composer Eric Whitacre. Chautauqua Auditorium. Photo by…
Operas in the mountains, from 1816 to 2020 | Sharps & Flatirons
Two entertaining comedies and a grim story from the home front at Central City By Peter Alexander July 15 at 1:52 p.m. Central City Opera (CCO) opened their summer season June 28 with a brisk and bubbly production of Rossini’s 1816 comedy The Barber of Seville. The summer’s other stylistically varied productions have now opened:…
CMF Co-Commission, guests at the festival | Sharps & Flatirons
Eric Whitacre’s Murmur features violinist Anne Akiko Myers By Peter Alexander July 13 at 9 a.m. Peter Oundjian often speaks in superlatives. CMF Music Director Peter Oundjian The music director of the Colorado Music Festival (CMF) says that the next two weeks of the festival (July 15–July 25) includes one of the composer’s “greatest pieces,”…
Engaging World Premiere at CMF | Sharps & Flatirons
Well shaped performance of “the greatest First Symphony” By Peter Alexander July 11 at 12:24 a.m. The world premiere of an engaging concerto for saxophone by American composer Joan Tower topped the bill at the Colorado Music Festival last night (July 10). The Festival Orchestra was conducted by CMF music director Peter Oundjian, with Steven…
4th Colorado Music Festival starts with fireworks | Sharps & Flatirons
Festival-opening concert ends with a crashing wave of sound By Peter Alexander July 4 at 12:30 a.m. It was July 3, and the fireworks started early at Chautauqua. They were musical fireworks, as the 49th Colorado Music Festival (CMF) got underway last night with music by Russian composer Igor Stravinsky, literally titled “Fireworks” (Feu d’artifice).…
2025 CMF gets underway with “Rimsky-Korsakov on uppers” | Sharps & Flatirons
Hélène Grimaud plays Brahms, Steven Banks premieres sax concerto by Joan Tower By Peter Alexander July 1 at 11:34 a.m. The 2025 Colorado Music Festival (CMF) does NOT open with Scheherazade or the Russian Easter Overture, but fans of composer Rimsky-Korsakov should be pleased anyway. Music director Peter Oundjian says that the first piece on…
OPINION: Honoring the text in opera productions | Sharps & Flatirons
Who wins—the director or the librettist? By Peter Alexander June 18 at 11:18 a.m. I was in New York recently. While there, I took the opportunity to meet a friend at the Metropolitan Opera, where we saw the new production of Salome by Richard Strauss. The production, starring Elza van den Heever in the title…
CU NOW explores new opera by Mark Adamo | Sharps & Flatirons
Opera producer/conductor Sarah Caldwell as Greek tragedy By Peter Alexander June 11 at 10:15 p.m. Mark Adamo knows his Greek mythology. The composer/librettist is known not only for having written an opera on Aristophanes’s Lysistrata, but also having linked Bram Stoker’s Dracula with the Greek myth of the Bacchae as librettist for John Corigliano’s 2021…
GRACE NOTES: Season-ending programs | Sharps & Flatirons
BCO celebrates an anniversary, Ars Nova celebrates eternity By Peter Alexander May 20 at 8:35 p.m. NOTE: The following post covers events for the next two weeks. I will be traveling with the Longmont Concert Band for a performance in Carnegie Hall May 25 and not back in Colorado until June 1. —Ed. The Boulder…
Boulder Symphony teams with Kim Robards Dance | Sharps & Flatirons
Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, with or without choreography By Peter Alexander May 15 at 5:48 p.m. The end of the concert season is prime time for orchestras to tackle the big works. Boulder Symphony with conductor Devin Patrick Hughes Toward the end of the 2024–25 season, in Boulder County we’ve had the Longmont Symphony presenting J.S.…
MahlerFest 2025 culminates with tragic symphony | Sharps & Flatirons
Programs are filled with music of defiance, resistance and remembrance, May 14–18 By Peter Alexander May 12 at 8:08 p.m. It all starts with the symphony. Every year, the Colorado MahlerFest presents one of the symphonic works of composer Gustav Mahler—one of the ten symphonies, or another large-scale symphonic work such as the Lied von…
GRACE NOTES: Chamber piano with strings, bassoons and student soloists | Sharps & Flatirons
Piano Quartet at the Academy, Bassoon Quartet with Cantabile, BCO with competition winners By Peter Alexander May 7 at 4:40 p.m. The Boulder Piano Quartet—pianist David Korevaar with violinist Igor Pikayzen, violist Matthew Dane and cellist Thomas Heinrich—will present a free concert in Chapel Hall at the Academy University Hill Friday (7 p.m. May 9;…
Rare Beethoven at the Boulder Phil | Sharps & Flatirons
MIssa Solemnis, “Magnum Opus” of great extent and significance, May 4 By Peter Alexander April 30 at 5:50 p.m. Beethoven was a few years years late. He promised his friend, pupil and patron Archduke Rudolf that he would write a solemn mass—Missa Solemnis—for the latter’s investiture in 1820 as the Archbishop of Olomouc. But the…
Musical Hoedown in Longmont May 3 | Sharps & Flatirons
Longmont Symphony Pops Concert features musical portraits of the West By Peter Alexander April 29 at 5:22 p.m. The Longmont Symphony and conductor Elliot Moore will end the 2024-25 concert season with their annual Pops Concert, Saturday at the Vance Brand Civic Auditorium (7 p.m. May 3; details below). The program offers what the orchestra…
GRACE NOTES: Curiosity and chamber music | Sharps & Flatirons
Offerings from the Boulder Symphony and Boulder Chamber Orchestra By Peter Alexander April 24 at 8:40 p.m. The Boulder Symphony agrees to disagree for its upcoming Curiosity Concert (3 p.m. Saturday, April 26 at Grace Commons; details below). Curiosity Concerts are aimed at children ages four to 12, but structured to appeal to the entire…
Seicento Celebrates Women of the Renaissance | Sharps & Flatirons
Program of 'top-notch' music by women from from 16th and 17th centuries By Peter Alexander April 23 at 6:25 p.m. The music only recently became available for the next concert program by Boulder’s Seicento Baroque Ensemble, but it’s 400 years old. The program to be performed the coming weekend in Golden, Westminster and Boulder (Friday–Sunday…
GRACE NOTES: B-minor Mass and string quartet with guitar | Sharps & Flatirons
LSO presents Bach’s “Magnum Opus,” Takács Quartet partners with Nicoló Spera By Peter Alexander April 9 at 5:20 p.m. The Longmont Symphony Orchestra (LSO) and conductor Elliot Moore end their season with one of the most significant pieces by J.S. Bach, his monumental Mass in B minor. The performance of this large-scale work will be…
“The Wheel of Time” at the Dairy Arts Center | Sharps & Flatirons
Boulder Bach Festival and the Dairy present orchestral program Sunday By Peter Alexander April 3 at 5:25 p.m. Co-presenters Boulder Bach Festival (BBF) and the Dairy Arts Center join together for an orchestral program of wide variety and styles, concluding the BBF’s 2024–25 concert season. The program, titled “Wheel of Time,” will be performed Sunday…
Ars Nova Singers meet Steampunk | Sharps & Flatirons
“Science/Fantasy” program in Lafayette, Denver and Longmont By Peter Alexander 11:45 p.m. April 2 It all started at a wedding. The next concert by Boulder’s adventurous Ars Nova Singers and conductor Thomas Morgan is a departure from the usual. Normally devoted to music of the Renaissance and contemporary times, they will perform music from the…
Boulder Phil presents Rachmaninoff and music of two festivals | Sharps & Flatirons
Guest pianist Alessio Max and soloists from orchestra in the spotlight By Peter Alexander March 27 at 5:50 p.m. Two works inspired by festivals will form bookends for the next Boulder Philharmonic concert, at 4 p.m. Sunday (March 30; details below), with a big, popular Romantic piano concerto in the center. The Piano Concerto No.…
Boulder Symphony weekend concerts will be recorded | Sharps & Flatirons
U.S. premiere, arias by Rossini and Puccini, and Beethoven’s countryside By Peter Alexander March 26 at 5:10 p.m. The composer Peter Drew came late to a musical career. After some inconclusive experiences in music as a youngster, he worked a succession of jobs including taxi driver and cruise-ship host and eventually settled in as a…
Coming opera seasons in Colorado | Sharps & Flatirons
CU Eklund Opera and Opera Colorado announce 2025–’26 seasons By Peter Alexander March 17 at 5:43 p.m. Leigh Holman stepped before the rich, ruby-red curtains at Macky Auditorium yesterday (March 16) afternoon and spoke to the audience. The occasion was the final performance of CU’s production of Gilbert & Sullivan’s Pirates of Penzance. Holman is…
Ecklund Opera presents Gilbert & Sullivan | Sharps & Flatirons
The perennially popular Pirates of Penzance puts in at Macky for the weekend By Peter Alexander 10:40 p.m. March 12 CU’s Ecklund Opera Program will present Gilbert and Sullivan’s hilarious Pirates of Penzance Friday through Sunday in Macky Auditorium (March 14–16; details below), and conductor Nicholas Carthy wants everyone to know what to expect. “It's…
GRACE NOTES: “The Feminine Divine” and string quartets | Sharps & Flatirons
Boulder Bach’s CORE and the Takács Quartet fill the weekend By Peter Alexander March 5 at 5:20 p.m. COmpass REsonance (CORE), a string ensemble that began as the resident Baroque orchestra of the Boulder Bach Festival, will present a program of music by four women composers of the Baroque era on Saturday (4 p.m. March…
Boulder Chamber Orchestra features “Boulder Celebrities” | Sharps & Flatirons
Violinist Ed Dusinberre and violist Richard O’Neill will play Mozart By Peter Alexander Feb. 27 at 5:15 p.m. The Boulder Chamber Orchestra (BCO) traces the history of classical music on their next concert (7:30 p.m. Saturday, March 1; details below), with a concerto grosso from the Baroque era, music from the heart of the classical…
Boulder’s Starkland has three new albums | Sharps & Flatirons
Electric guitar, accordion, and piano at the frontier of musical creativity By Peter Alexander Feb. 20 at 10:30 p.m. In the about the past two years—specifically since April, 2023—Starkland, a record label located in Boulder, has released three diverse new albums. In keeping with the label’s stated goal of promoting “alternative classical, experimental, and avant-garde…
Rare and familiar Puccini double bill at the Dairy | Sharps & Flatirons
Boulder Opera pairs brutal tragedy with effervescent comedy By Peter Alexander Feb. 6 at 3:00 p.m. Boulder Opera Company (BOC) will present a double bill of two operas by Puccini at the Dairy Arts Center this weekend (Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 7–9; details below). Two more contrasting operas could hardly be imagined. Il Tabarro…
Ars Nova welcomes pianist David Korevaar | Sharps & Flatirons
“Lost/Found” features forgotten work by Enrique Granados By Peter Alexander Feb. 4 at 6:15 p.m. David Korevaar is an adventurer, in the mountains and on the piano. Cases in point: A photo of Korevaar on the summit of 13,088-ft. Paiute Peak in the Indian Peaks Wilderness (below); and his performances with the Ars Nova Singers…
GRACE NOTES: Brahms 2nd twice and drummers, all on Saturday | Sharps & Flatirons
Boulder and Longmont symphonies at home, Kodo at Mackey By Peter Alexander Feb. 12 at 11:15 a.m. The Boulder Symphony joins with the Niwot High School Symphony Orchestra for a performance of the spirited Danzón No. 2 of Arturo Márquez Saturday and Sunday (Jan. 15 and 16; details below) at the Dairy Arts Center. Other…
Boulder Chamber Orchestra changes Saturday’s program | Sharps & Flatirons
Edvard Grieg's Holberg Suite replaces Gerald Finzi Clarinet Concerto Jan. 25 By Peter Alexander Jan. 24 at 9:40 a.m. The Boulder Chamber Orchestra has changed the planned program for their concert tomorrow (7:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 25). The program as originally announced included the Gerald Finzi Clarinet Concerto performed by the orchestra's principal clarinet player,…
Renée Fleming presents a musical tribute to the natural world | Sharps & Flatirons
“Voice of Nature” will feature songs and a film from National Geographic By Peter Alexander Jan. 22 at 5:50 p.m. Soprano Renée Fleming Soprano Renée Fleming will come to Macky Auditorium next week (7:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 31) to present a program that she developed while cut off from her professional life during the COVID…
Colorado Music Festival announces summer 2025 season | Sharps & Flatirons
Two ninth symphonies among highlights By Peter Alexander Jan 22 at 11:25 a.m. The Colorado Music Festival (CMF) has announced its summer schedule of concerts at the Chautauqua Auditorium in Boulder. Chautauqua Auditorium. Photo by Geremy Kornreich The season of 19 concerts will culminate with performances of two different ninth symphonies: Beethoven’s masterpiece, featuring the…
Boulder Chamber Orchestra presents string serenades | Sharps & Flatirons
Clarinetist Kellan Toohey plays Concerto by Gerald Finzi By Peter Alexander Jan. 21 at 11:12 p.m. The Boulder Chamber Orchestra will present a concert Saturday featuring their string section (7:30 p.m. Jan. 25; details below), playing one of the great masterworks for strings, Dvořák’s Serenade for Strings. The concert, under the direction of Bahman Saless,…
GRACE NOTES: Piano quintets and and a family concert | Sharps & Flatirons
Little known Quintet by Louise Farrenc and Prokofiev’s much loved Peter and the Wolf By Peter Alexander Jan. 16 at 12:10 a.m. The Boulder Piano Quartet will be joined by bassist Susan Cahill, a member of the Colorado Symphony, for a program of piano quintets Friday (7 p.m. Jan. 17; details below) at the Academy,…