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Culture

By Tracy Shaffer

Tracy at DAM The Denver Art Museum's current offering is a mud pie for the senses. With the most basic of themes, earth, this global exhibition brings together time and place to reveal how the artist deals with dirt. Curators from around the museum present their earthenwares in ways that honor the simultaneous beauty and function of the Coors Porcelain Company's vessels, the aesthic simplicity and eternal popularity of the blue & white ceramic, and the exquisite work of Native American potter, Nampeyo, who built a name for herself and a family legacy through her creations. 

27 June, 2011 /
[click "Play" to hear Susan's conversation with Josh Aronson and Adam Neiman]

 

Playinfg for Real poster Now in its 9th season, the Telluride Musicfest adds two new events to its 2011 lineup, a wine and dessert concert for all subscribers and sponsors to thank everyone for helping to ensure the Musicfest tradition of chamber music concerts in a private home continues – and a movie night.

Movie night takes place Wednesday, June 29, 6:00 at the five-star Wilkinson Public Library. The event features a screening of producer/director Josh Aronson's inspiring one-hour documentary, "Playing for Real," (2000), an intimate look at building careers in big-time classical music. The film showcases the extraordinary talents of 14-year-old Japanese violin prodigy Mayuko Kamio and 2011 Musicfest guest pianist Adam Neiman – when he was 22 and already one of the finest pianists in the world.

26 June, 2011 /

by Jim Bedford

MV5BMTg4MTQ3NTI3Nl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzEzODQ2NA@@._V1._SY317_ Caveofforgottendreams_smallposter The Nugget Theatre in beautiful downtown Telluride shows movies all year long and screens three films this coming week.

Friday through Thursday, June 24-30, the animated KUNG FU PANDA II plays at the Nugget for the whole family. Friday through Wednesday, the pre-wedding hijinks of the HANGOVER II continue its R rated laughs.

On Thursday, June 30 only, Telluride favorite Werner Herzog brings the amazing CAVE OF FORGOTTEN DREAMS to this month's Telluride Film Festival Presents, a unique view of prehistoric art long forgotten ,now remembered for all time.

See the Nugget website for trailers and reviews, and below for movie times.

23 June, 2011 /

By Jon Lovekin

A Tom Boy Ride
A Tom Boy Ride

Preparing for a festival as grand as the Telluride Bluegrass Festival takes time. For many Festivarians, the week to 10 day experience is their one vacation of the year. The excitement in the weeks before the Summer Solstice reaches a fever pitch the weekend before the music starts. In the early years, an entire festival was spent flopped in a tent in Town Park listening to the music from there, too sick from altitude, sun, and fun to be able to move.

As the festival caught on, pitching a tent in an empty lot or sleeping in a car late in the week ceased being possible. Prior planning became necessary and arrival in the campground early in the week morphed to getting there the weekend before. Town passes on the Landcruiser faded to no longer trying to leave town at all. We started working at the ticket booths, renting bikes, and moving in for the week.

23 June, 2011 /
[click "Play" to hear Maria Bachmann speak with Susan about the Musicfest program]

 

Maria There's no judging this book by its cover. Although its cover is a thing of beauty. Tall and elegant, violinist Maria Bachmann has the look of cool patrician refinement but just beneath the surface, a red hot gypsy soul. In performance the combination intensifies the present moment. And those moments are upon us.

Maria Bachmann is the artistic director of Telluride Musicfest, an event that occurs annually in Telluride in June to celebrate chamber music in its intended form: first class musicians performing in an intimate home environment. (See related post for details.)

21 June, 2011 /

By David Feela

ed. note: The Summer Solstice occurs on June 21, 2011, at 11:16 am, MDT. David Feela gives us a bittersweet memory of that moment in time we begin to contemplate that at first imperceptible slide toward the shortest day of the year. Enjoy.

David Feela On the longest day of the year when sunlight puddles at the horizon, it’s officially summer.  Every year from such a precipice we call the solstice, the long ascent and the long decline are equally visible.  Maybe that’s why there’s so much light, and so much extra time to see.

Give me a beautiful sunset and a warm evening to conjure my red 1965 Mustang convertible. Just the thought of it makes me close my eyes. Like light from a burned-out star, all that flashy chrome still shines from somewhere inside me. All those layers of wax I buffed clean through the hood still make the sweat on my forehead bead up. The top folded back, the radio blaring, a full summer moon rolling like a hubcap across the sky.

20 June, 2011 /

Maria, Jon, Josh Year after year, they hit it out of the ballpark. We are talking about key players of the Telluride Musicfest, now entering its 9th season, June 22 – July 3.

Musicfest's artistic director Maria Bachmann and her Trio Solisti colleague, Jon Klibonoff received raves from a Fanfare critic for their premiere performance of Philip Glass's "First Violin Sonata," on their latest CD, Glass Heart.

20 June, 2011 /

By Rosemerry Wahtola Trommmer (ed. note: I love it when Rosemerry sends us some of her writing. Fathers' Day was the excuse for these two poems. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.) Inheriting PatienceHear how the galaxy’s engine runs...

18 June, 2011 /

Prudence

By Tracy Shaffer

Sunday afternoons at the Mercury Café are always an eclectic mix with swing dance, poetry slams and tarot readings on the calendar. But last week the place levitated to a place even the Tibetan meditation class would envy. The occasion was a concert by the brilliant jazz band, Zuri, featuring the angelic voice of Prudence Mabhena, to benefit the Cunningham Foundation.

Hosted by Zuri cellist James Bailey, the event opened with some “world-inspired, improvisational, high-energy jazz”, as vibes playing percussionist Greg Tanner Harris describes the Zuri sound (I’d have gone with “jaw-dropping, eye-popping” myself), while artist Laurie Maves painted the scene on canvas for auction. Soon Prudence rolled in gracefully; the most grounded human being I’ve ever seen, with a soul that emanates from her brown/black eyes. She is pure spirit and a set of pipes that will make you believe in God.

17 June, 2011 /
[click "Play" to hear Emily Shoff's conversation with Abigail Washburn]  

Abby_002 I first met Abigail Washburn in a basement studio in Packard Hall at Colorado College. We were hosting tryouts for our female a cappella group, Ellement. She showed up and needless to say, tryouts were done for the day. Her voice was so beautiful that we actually started rehearsing with her that same afternoon. We’d found the final member of our group.

Since college, Washburn’s career has taken off. She returns to the Bluegrass Stage for her 7th time at the 38th annual Telluride Bluegrass Festival, June 16-June 19th 2011. With her powerful juxtaposition of Appalachian folk songs and far-flung sounds, Washburn inspires and invigorates her audiences.
16 June, 2011 /