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December 2009

[click "Play" to listen to Susan's conversation with George Gray]


Wednesday, December 30, 7 p.m., Telluride's Michael D. Palm Theatre holds its end-of-year fundraiser. Sharing the stage for the fun and games will be members of the Telluride Choral Society and Mark Galbo's Rock and Roll Academy, not to mention the star of the show, George Gray –  rather, George's alter ego resplendent in a sequined jumpsuit, paying tribute to none other than The King.

28 December, 2009 /

IMG_8277 The valley floor in Telluride: it's not just for prairie dogs anymore. The Telluride Nordic Association now grooms and maintains an elaborate trail system on the valley floor, including seasonal river crossings at various points to access the western end of the valley near Lawson Hill.

28 December, 2009 /
[click "Play" to hear Susan's interview with Rusty Evans]


1997 was a banner year for the Telluride Bluegrass Festival. The star-spangled line-up featured Guy Clark, Patty Griffin, David Crosby, Bela Fleck and The Flecktones, Leftover Salmon, Shawn Colvin and, the headliner, the Man in Black, Johnny Cash. It was Fort Knox backstage when Cash's caravan rolled in. It was New Year's Eve and the Fourth of July when the superstar hit the stage rocking.


The crowd loved Shawn Colvin all over again when she performed in concert at Telluride's historic Sheridan Opera House on December 27, part of the Sheridan Art Foundation's 2009 holiday concert series. But Shawn shows up regularly in town for holiday ski-cations. Not Johnny. That was a one and only, one time blockbuster – until now. Now Johnny Cash is back, at least as close as it gets to the genuine article. Next up at the Opera House: Rusty Evans & Ring of Fire – A Tribute to Johnny Cash. Showtime is Tuesday, December 29, 8 p.m.
27 December, 2009 /

IMGP0774 Telluride Adaptive Sports Program (TASP) has moved into its new space in the Capella complex in the Mountain Village. To celebrate its new location, TASP will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday, December 29. The facility will be open to the public from 3:30-5:30 pm, with appetizers and beverages.

After years of tight quarters, TASP is enjoying some breathing room. There are separate spaces for clients, instructors and staff, with cubbies for the clients and lockers and cubbies for the instructors. In addition, the location right on the Meadows Run means that riders can access the snow right out the door. No more hefting equipment 100 yards out to Lift 4, or hiking students up the hill to reach the Meadows.  

27 December, 2009 /
[click "Play" for Susan's conversation with Leo Nocentelli]


Telluride's Sheridan Arts Foundation continues its bad ass holiday concert series at the Opera House,  December 28, 8:00 pm, with a performance by The Meters Experience with Leo Nocentelli, a legend discovered by a legend.


In 1957, Fats Domino went looking for a young musician to join his band, someone with a big reputation on the streets of New Orleans. What he found was a child prodigy, a boy of 11 who had already hit his stride. At age 14, Leo Nocentelli became a session guitarist for Allen Toussaint.
26 December, 2009 /

Ted Hoff of Cottonwood Ranch and Kennel shows us a training session with his young female Labrador retriever, Mae. Watch how Mae maintains her attention on Ted, in order to get the job done. Good girl, Mae. Ted really makes it...

26 December, 2009 /
[click "Play" to listen to Sheryl Rydmark]

Telluride (2) On December 29, the Telluride Gallery of Fine Art opens a show of new work by jeweler Cheryl Rydmark. The jeweler is renowned locally for her now famous asymmetrical arrangement of sterling silver beads, gold, leaf-like charms, and small diamonds, worn by a trend-setting group of Telluride ladies like a sorority necklace.


A classically-trained-painter-turned-metal-artist, Rydmark's creation are as elegant and harmonious as Einstein's theory of relativity, the architecture of Renzo Piano, Brancusi's sculpture, Rothko's paintings, and ancient Etruscan jewelry, works that convey the idea that, in the hands of a master, complex concepts can be successfully conveyed very simply. After 35 years on the job, Rydmark is a true master, often described as a "jeweler's jeweler" for her uncompromising quality and sensitive handling of the materials.
26 December, 2009 /


Her latest release, "Shawn Colvin Live,"  was nominated for a Grammy for best Contemporary Folk Album. Shawn Colvin appears live at Telluride's historic Sheridan Opera House on Sunday, December 27, 8 p.m.

Colvin was born in Vermillion, South Dakota, a small college town just south of Sioux Falls. At age 10, she picked up her brother's Harmony four-string guitar and bought the plain vanilla Mel Bay chord books. At 13, she confiscated a classical gut instrument her father meant to give her mother. Colvin's first recording session occurred in high school, when she was also singing the role of Anna in "The King and I." She made her first public appearance on campus at the University of Illinois at age 15.

25 December, 2009 /