Events

[click "Play" for Erika Gordon's conversation with Susan]

Space.odyssey

The Telluride Film Festival doesn't mess around. No fluff. Not ever. Just culturally significant films that also entertain. Considered one of the most influential of all sci-fi films ever, and one of the most controversial,"2001: A Space Odyssey," (1968, 141 minutes) opens the 2010/2011 season of  the Telluride Film Festival's Sunday at the Palm series. The screening takes place Sunday, September 26, 4 p.m. at the Michael D. Palm Theatre.


"2001: A Space Odyssey"  is a meditation on man's inventiveness, but it comes with a warning label. (Think "Hal.") James Cameron owes a debt to Stanley Kubrick, whose film is the daddy of special effects, surrealism, and scientific realism in cinema.

Sunday flag I’ve been a fan of the Telluride Blues & Brews Festivals for years. I’ve actually watched the event morph from a few tasting tents on Colorado Avenue to a full-blown, internationally renowned music festival with some of the best musicians on the planet, fabulous microbrews and a venue that simply blows the socks off most other blues festivals - outside of New Orleans, that is. And the 2010 TB&BF was no exception. It was, in fact, one of the best ever.

  Graced with magnificent, cerulean blue skies, mountainsides of glowing, golden aspen and temperatures in the 80’s, the stage was set for a weekend of stellar performance, outrageous weather and ecstatic experience.  Thursday evening opened the festivities with a free sunset concert at the Mountain Village Plaza featuring the Gold Kings – a talented local band of “brothers” – followed by on-the-rise British blues guitarist Matt Schofield – wow!

[click "Play" to hear Tony Forrest's conversation with Susan]

Fall Tilt Poster 8 As aspen trees blanket Telluride's mountains in gold, the big question is who wins the gold (a cash purse) at the second annual Fall Tilt in the Mountain Village.

Fall Tilt marks the last Yee! Haw! of the summer season for gonzo bikers eager to test their skills on a blistering downhill course. The event takes places Friday, September 24 and Saturday, September 25  in the Mountain Village Bike Park, four adjacent downhill trails that are to be used simultaneously for the race from 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. Terrain varies from rocky and technical riding on the World Cup course to flowing and slower riding on the "recovery" trail. (The rider gets to name his or her poison.) To keep the course safe for riders and spectators alike, the race course is taped and marked, closed to the general public and patrolled.Tech support tents and support staff will be available near the vicinity of the finish line; riders are responsible for their own repair and equipment replacement.

by Lauren Metzger
Ah Haa School for the Arts

Massage  Pardon the pun but I could not resist. Yes. The 500 Hour Massage Therapy Certification program is back at the Ah Haa School for the Arts this fall. The Connecting Point School of Massage will be starting this unsurpassed hands-on experience October 18th and it will run through April 6th. What a great way to spend your winter!

Comprised of Swedish and advanced massage techniques, anatomy and physiology, business and ethics, the program offers a variety of healing modalities, such as Reiki, Reflexology, Aromatherapy and Spa Therapies. The objective of this 500-Hour Massage Therapy Certificate Program is to teach students how to become dynamic, effective and successful massage therapists. Which all of us massage lovers will thank you for. Listen to Susan Viebrock's interview with the Connecting Point's Caycee Ames for more details on this program, which is approved by the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork for entrance to the national exam for massage certification.

[click "Play" for the continuation of Eric Moore's conversation about the Festival]

Knc The list of Year #1 participants in Eric Moore's brand new Telluride Photo Festival is impressive: The International League of Conservation Photographers is represented along with National Parks Magazine, Sigma Pro's Dave FitzSimmons, APhotoEditor.com's Rob Haggart, also former director of photography for Men's Journal and Outside. Ace Kvale, Bill Ellzey, Gordon Wiltsie, Kathleen Norris Cook, Robert Glenn Ketchum, Tim Kemple, and Tom Till, are also displaying their work.

[click "Play" to listen to Eric Moore's conversation with Susan]

Unknown Telluride is a nonstop photo op: every moment a Kodak moment. The region is also a stone's throw away from four National Parks, several national monuments and state parks (Hovenweep, Dead Horse Point, and the Black Canyon.) And when it's not a world-class ski resort, Telluride is a festival town, where different tribes gather to celebrate all kinds of music, mushrooms, fine art, film, and the natural world. A Telluride Photo Festival? The event that was a giant "Duh!" is an idea whose time has finally come thanks to a young entrepreneur, Eric Moore, with support from Telluride's Ah Haa School for the Arts.

It’s Saturday at Blues & Brews. Thursday was a cool jumpstart and Friday was awesome – honestly some of the best blues guitar playing I’ve ever heard. From smooth opener Matt Schofield to "bad boy" George Thorogood’s  closing act – and I can’t forget Dana...

[click "Play", David Oyster speaks about Martin Scorsese]

9-20 TFF Scorsese Telluride Film Festival Cinematheque proves the adage about the best things in life: The film club offers free movies, food and food for thought in the form of lively discussions. The fully packed evening is a great vehicle for cinephiles, who jones for the art of the cinema year 'round, not just over the Telluride Film Festival weekend.

Programmed by Film Fest co-director Gary Meyer, the Fall 2010 series opens Monday, September 20, 5:30 p.m., at Telluride's five-star Wilkinson Public Library, which partners with the Film Fest on this program. The Fall focus is the career of  legendary director Martin Scorsese, whose popular films include "Mean Streets, " "Raging Bull," "Goodfellas," "Casino," "The Departed," and "Shutter Island."

The first film of the four-part Cinematheque Scorsese event is "A Personal Journey with Martin Scorsese Through American Movies."

Having the great good fortune to be asked by TIO CEOs Susan and Clint Viebrock to cover this year’s Telluride Blues & Brews Festival, I decided to start with the kickoff event on Thursday – a Sunset Blues Concert at the Mountain Village Plaza,...