In 2013, the Boulder Philharmonic’s concert season featured the theme “Nature in Music.” Kevin Shuck, the Executive Director at the tinme, reached out to Dave to create a series of “Nature in Music” hikes on Boulder Open Space lands as pre-concert experiences to draw connections between works on the concert program and Boulder’s natural environment. The very first program highlighted Finnish composer Einojuhani Rautavaara’s Cantus Articus, a concerto for birds and orchestra that used recordings of birds from marshes near the Arctic Circle in place of a solo instrument. Armed with portable speakers and an iPod, Dave took groups of nature enthusiasts and concert-goers on a birdwatching walk at a local marsh, playing selections of Rautavaara’s music and comparing it to the sounds of birds in a Colorado wetland.

Other hikes followed. The performance of Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony (#6) and Smetana’s Moldau were featured in a hike along Boulder Creek to explore how rivers influenced composers. The premiere of Jeffrey Nytch’s symphony Formations was celebrated with a geology hike along the NCAR trail, co-presented by Dave and the composure, to sample the music while delving into the geology of the Front Range.

Over the last decade, Dave’s musical nature hikes have explored insects. birds, stars, rocks, rivers and lakes, and landscapes as sources for musical inspiration and helped bring the Boulder Philharmonic’s performances to a wider audience.

Upcoming Musical Hikes

Meet the Planets: Music and Telescopes
Friday November 29,   7 – 9 pm  

***Backup weather date:
Saturday November 30, 7 – 9 pm
OR
Sunday December 1,  7  – 9 pm

***This program is being offered just ONCE out of the 3 possible nights, on the one night with the best clear skies forecast. 

The Boulder Philharmonic Orchestra’s incredible November 10 concert showcased Gustav Holst’s work The Planets, and John Hein’s Moons of the Giants about the icy moons of the outer solar system. Take a free music-themed tour through the solar system with a large telescope and community naturalist Dave Sutherland, while sampling excerpts from this stirring music. After seeing the moons of Uranus and Neptune and the rings of Saturn, (and maybe giant Jupiter, if we stay late enough) you will feel humbled, inspired and filled with joy!

Meet at Joder Ranch trailhead.
Sign up with dsutherland4747@gmail.com to be notified of the night chosen.

This program is jointly hosted by the Boulder Philharmonic Orchestra and Boulder County Audubon Society.