Boulder Phil’s 2021 Virtual Discovery Concert
Cheers, Tears and Fears: Music and Emotion
March 15 – May 21, 2021

The 2021 Discovery Concert is completely virtual this season, expanding our usual one-day field trip experience in Macky Auditorium to a month-long Discovery offering. In addition to our annual curriculum packet, this year’s program offers supplemental virtual education materials, including a library of interactive recorded performances by Boulder Phil musicians, that parents, teachers, and students can access online at any time throughout Discovery month.

Our 2021 Discovery Program explores the relationship between music and emotions. Students will learn how composers use different musical techniques such as dynamics, instrumentation, and key signatures to create emotion in their music. Featuring works by Samuel Barber, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Antonín Dvorák, George Walker, Gustav Mahler, Missy Mazzoli, Felix Mendelssohn, Jessie Montgomery, Modest Mussorgsky, Florence Price, and Clara Schumann.

To experience the 2021 Discovery Program, please complete this online form: https://bit.ly/3toXuX2. You will receive access to our complete virtual program to be enjoyed at your convenience anytime from March 15 – May 21.

The 2021 Discovery Program is partially funded by Boulder Phil’s education program sponsors including the SeiSolo Foundation, SCFD, and Eleanor and Harry Poehlmann. Due to their incredible support, we are thrilled to offer our 2021 Discovery Program for FREE! Please consider giving a suggested contribution of $6 per student to support our on-going efforts to provide and expand our annual Discovery program.  Donate Now

May 3, 6 & 8 at 5:30 PM MT

This course explores the influence of Shakespeare’s plays on composers in the 19th and 20th centuries, and an exploration of the role that music played during performances of Shakespeare’s plays during his lifetime. The guest speaker is Professor Ross Duffin of Case Western Reserve University, a world-renowned Shakespeare expert. (3 sessions)

Classes will be offered via Zoom and will be available to watch on-demand for registered participants for 2 weeks after the streaming date.

• Cost is $25 per course (per household)
• Silver and Gold Baton Members receive access for free – see registration link below
• Standard Members get 10% off

Purchase access through the PayPal links below.  You’ll receive a registration email containing Zoom link info shortly.

Register for the Shakespeare and Music Course here:

ATTENTION Silver and Gold Baton Members – register here to attend this course for free.
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing a Zoom link for accessing the course.

*Note: this event has moved from April 28 to May 5*

5:15 PM – Gather on Zoom
5:30 PM – Event start

Enjoy an evening with soprano Angela Brown, whose “charming personality…unites opera, pops, and gospel in one sensational voice.” As a Metropolitan Opera star, a noted interpreter of African American spirituals, and a featured artist on the two-time Grammy Award winning recording, “Ask Your Mama,” Ms. Brown joins the Philharmonic and guests for a delightful evening of performance and conversation.

Opera…from a Sistah’s Point of View

Traveling the world as an international opera star, Angela Brown noticed something about audiences. “I would see very few people who looked like me,” says Brown. On the surface, it looked like a racial divide, but when Brown performed at schools and universities across the country, she realized the gap was bigger than race. This compelled her to create Opera…from a Sistah’s Point of View, a show that dispels the myths surrounding the sometimes-intimidating art form called opera.

Through her not-so-serious takes on the opera stories and by demonstrating the ethnic, geographic, and socio-economic diversity portrayed in opera characters, she helps people from all walks of life and races find themselves in and enjoy opera. She blows up the preconceived expectations of opera by mixing show-stopping arias, poignant art songs, and moving spirituals with tongue-in-cheek commentary from a Black perspective. The show breaks down barriers for audiences that wouldn’t necessarily include opera as a part of their entertainment options. Brown likes to say, “Opera is not about being a certain way, dressing a certain way, speaking a certain way. It’s about experiencing, and opera is for everyone!”

Make It A Party!
Our catering sponsor, Three Leaf Concepts, can deliver* hors d’oeuvres and a cocktail mixer to your home in time for the event.  Order must be submitted by Friday, April 30. 

Individual Boxed Appetizers
Zucchini Wrapped, Blue Cheese & Candied Walnut Stuffed Date (Vegetarian)
Apricot Deviled Eggs (Vegetarian)
Lemongrass Beef Skewer with sweet soy and chili dipping sauce
Smoked Colorado Trout Pate with crispy potato, dill creme, radish sprouts
Chocolate Dipped Strawberries
Russian Tea Cookies

Strawberry Lemonade

*Delivery to Boulder, Louisville, and Lafayette residents only. Others may pick up at Zucca, 808 Main Street, in Louisville.

Support your Phil and experience music in an intimate virtual setting through this unique series of fundraising events. Each Event of Note features a short recital by one of our exhilarating guest artists and an interactive discussion moderated by Michael Butterman. You may choose to add a delightful assortment of hors d’oeuvres and a cocktail mixer delivered to your home.

Celebrate the Phil’s season conclusion with multi-talented Cuban pianist and composer Aldo López-Gavilán. Equally versed in both classical and jazz worlds as a recitalist, concerto soloist, chamber-music collaborator, and performer of his own electrifying jazz compositions, Mr. López-Gavilán is praised for his “dazzling technique and rhythmic fire.” 

Support your Phil and experience music in an intimate virtual setting through this unique series of fundraising events. Each Event of Note features a short recital by one of our exhilarating guest artists and an interactive discussion moderated by Michael Butterman. 

This summer, spend your Friday nights on the Hill! Grab dinner to-go from one of the Hill’s many restaurants and head to the Hill Event Street where different local bands will be performing every week.

The Boulder Phil’s string quartet, #nophilter, will perform on Friday, September 10 from 6-8 PM (between The Sink and Cafe Aion). Imagine pop, rock and metal played by a virtuosic string quartet.

Seating is available at the adjacent restaurants’ outdoor patios, otherwise standing room. Attendees are encouraged to bring folding chairs or blankets to sit on if they like.

The Boulder Phil and the Boulder County Audubon Society partner to connect community members with the natural world through music, as Interpretive Naturalist Dave Sutherland leads music-themed nature hikes in Boulder’s beautiful outdoor spaces. The Audubon Society is one of the world’s oldest non-profit environmental organizations dedicated to the conservation of birds and their habitat. These hikes are free and open to the public.

For thousands of years the moon has inspired poets, romantics, musicians and scientists alike. How do you musically capture something as ethereal as moonlight? Naturalist Dave Sutherland will guide a gentle journey into the light of the Long Nights Moon with a varied selection of classical music inspired by our silvery celestial neighbor, interspersed with modern-day science. Goosebumps encouraged. Bring a flashlight just in case, but we shouldn’t need them. Meet at Sawhill Ponds.

Reservation required: Email dsutherland4747@gmail.com to reserve your spot. Hikes are limited to 20 people; fully vaccinated.

Per the CDC and State of Colorado and Boulder County Public Health, most public health orders are now lifted. Face coverings are no longer required for fully vaccinated individuals on our field trips. Those who are not fully vaccinated are required to wear a face covering. Those who are fully vaccinated may choose whether or not to wear a face covering.

The Boulder Phil and the Boulder County Audubon Society partner to connect community members with the natural world through music, as Interpretive Naturalist Dave Sutherland leads music-themed nature hikes in Boulder’s beautiful outdoor spaces. The Audubon Society is one of the world’s oldest non-profit environmental organizations dedicated to the conservation of birds and their habitat. These hikes are free and open to the public.

For thousands of years the moon has inspired poets, romantics, musicians and scientists alike. How do you musically capture something as ethereal as moonlight? Naturalist Dave Sutherland will guide a gentle journey into the light of the Long Nights Moon with a varied selection of classical music inspired by our silvery celestial neighbor, interspersed with modern-day science. Goosebumps encouraged. Bring a flashlight just in case, but we shouldn’t need them. Meet at Sawhill Ponds.

Reservation required: Email dsutherland4747@gmail.com to reserve your spot. Hikes are limited to 20 people; fully vaccinated.

Per the CDC and State of Colorado and Boulder County Public Health, most public health orders are now lifted. Face coverings are no longer required for fully vaccinated individuals on our field trips. Those who are not fully vaccinated are required to wear a face covering. Those who are fully vaccinated may choose whether or not to wear a face covering.

Boulder Philharmonic Orchestra
Michael Butterman, conductor
Marcus Roberts Trio—Marcus Roberts, piano; Rodney Jordan, bass; Jason Marsalis, drums

GERSHWIN An American in Paris
GERSHWIN Piano Concerto in F

In January, the Boulder Phil returns to beautiful Macky Auditorium for a Gershwin celebration featuring the extraordinary Marcus Roberts Trio. We open with Gershwin’s famous travelogue—An American in Paris—full of memorable, energetic tunes. Then you’ll hear Gershwin’s Piano Concerto in F highlighted by dazzling improvisation.

The Boulder Phil has developed protocols to ensure a safe environment for everyone. Our policies continue to be guided by current recommendations from Boulder County Public Health and the Colorado Department of Public Health. All patrons age 12 and up must be fully vaccinated by the date of performance with masks required. Please visit BoulderPhil.org/safety for exemptions and the most up-to-date information. If any policy change makes you uncomfortable, or if you or someone in your party is exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms, please call our Box Office at 303.449.1343 to return your tickets for a refund or convert your tickets to a donation no later than 4 hours prior to the event.