Published: April 14, 2016
Concert in Boettcher Concert Hall
Stravinsky鈥檚 century-old masterpiece 鈥淭he Rite of Spring鈥 and Miles Davis鈥 landmark 鈥淏irth of the Cool鈥 are on the program at a free Boettcher Concert Hall showcase on April 26, featuring performances by 颁鲍-叠辞耻濒诲别谤鈥檚 ensembles and children from .
颁鲍-叠辞耻濒诲别谤鈥檚 and are set to perform, along with an elite nine-piece student jazz ensemble and about 100 kids from Colorado鈥檚 El Sistema program, which aspires to empower urban young people through music performance. In addition to Stravinsky and Davis, audiences will hear the Symphonic Suite from Leonard Bernstein鈥檚 鈥淥n the Waterfront鈥 film score and variations on 鈥淭winkle Twinkle Little Star.鈥

鈥淚t鈥檚 really a potpourri that is meant to demonstrate the talent of our students and give them a chance to perform in the premier concert hall on the Front Range,鈥 said Gary Lewis, director of orchestras at CU-Boulder.

Jamie Wolf, El Sistema Colorado鈥檚 program director and a choral teaching artist, says the kids she works with are 鈥渋n various states of nervousness and excitement鈥 about the performance. None of the children has never performed with a collegiate ensemble, and many have never played for an audience outside their own schools.听

鈥淥ur students always need more opportunities experiencing music-making at high levels to inspire them to continue and help them to realize what they could achieve someday,鈥 Wolf said. 鈥淚nteracting with college music majors will be eye-opening; performing in such a grand venue in front of such a huge crowd is going to boost their self-confidence; and this event will give them a tangible example of how hard work really does pay off.鈥澨

The performance marks the fourth time in eight years that College of Music ensembles have traveled to Boettcher Concert Hall, a landmark venue that plays host to the Colorado Symphony Orchestra. CU-Boulder College of Music Dean Robert Shay hopes to build on that tradition.

鈥淎s we move ahead with the implementation of our strategic plan, we will be doing even more concerts like this, growing our presence in Denver and in other major urban centers around the country,鈥 Shay said.

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