ASPEN'S CULTURAL CACHET
A Cosmopolitan Offering of Art, Dance, Theater,
Seminars, Science and Music
ASPEN, Colo. (Summer
2013) - Though Aspen is largely touted for its adrenaline-pumping activities
and natural beauty, its diverse cultural offerings are what truly make this
mountain town an "elevated" destination.
Modern Aspen was born more than
six decades ago when Chicago industrialist Walter Paepcke and his wife,
Elizabeth, invited intellectuals, artists and philosophers to convene in Aspen
for the fledgling Aspen
Institute for Humanistic Studies, established in the wake of the 1949
festival honoring the 200th (posthumous) birthday of humanist Johann
van Goethe. With lofty goals of promoting world peace and instilling humanism
in the tense post-war nation and world, the festival was a success, and spawned
the current Aspen Institute, Aspen Music Festival and School,
the International Design Conference (changed to Aspen Design Summit), and the Aspen Center for Physics.
Today, arts and culture thrive
in the company of outdoor adventure and a close-knit, dynamic community, making
Aspen a haven for the simultaneous nurturing of mind, body, and spirit. The
following are some examples of Aspen's elevated cultural offerings.
HIGH
NOTES
Aspen
Music Festival and School (AMFS) presents
its 63rd season
June 28 - Aug. 19, 2012 with 320
public events (many of them FREE) including concerts, masters classes,
rehearsals, lectures and discussions. The long list of artists who have graced the
stages in previous years includes Edgar Meyer, James Conlon, Julia Fischer,
Joshua Bell, Hilary Hahn, Leonidas Kavakos and many more luminaries.
Cultivating the
next generation of musical talent, AMFS brings 750 international
music students to Aspen each summer. In addition to performing scheduled
recitals at the Benedict Music Tent and Joan W. and Irving Harris Concert Hall,
the music students hold impromptu concerts in the streets of Aspen during the
summer, filling the hills with the sound of music. (www.aspenmusicfestival.com)
Aspen
Opera Theater Center,
part of Aspen Music Festival and School, offers intensive educational programs
for opera singers and coaches, culminating in three fully staged productions at
the Wheeler Opera House. Performances during the 2012 season will include new
productions of MOZART: The Magic Flute (Richard Bado, conductor); SONDHEIM: Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet
Street, A Musical Thriller (Robert Spano, conductor); and HARBISON: The Great Gatsby (Anne Manson,
conductor). In addition, the weekly public Opera Scenes Master Classes are
under the direction of Edward Berkeley and give singers the opportunity to
appear publicly in scenes with a conductor and piano or full orchestra. (www.aspenmusicfestival.com)
Jazz
Aspen Snowmass hosts
the two-week June
Festival (June 22 - July 7, 2012) with four nights of headline concerts
from world-class musicians (like last year's performers Cheryl Crow, Jennifer
Hudson and more) as well as free and ticketed concerts by JAS Academy Bands and
a closing weekend of small-venue shows. This year's headliners will include Joe
Cocker, K.D. Lang and Chris Botti. The incredibly popular open-air Labor Day Festival
returns to Snowmass Aug. 31 - Sept. 2, 2012, brining big names to the stunning
alfresco fall setting. Some of the announced headliners for this year include
Kid Rock, Sugarland, and Trombone Shorty. Last year's performers included Thievery
Corporation, Steely Dan, Michael Franti and Spearhead, Girl Talk and the Zac
Brown Band. JAS also presents JAS After Dark, a
series of small-venue performances taking place in conjunction with the June
and Labor Day festivals and at other times throughout the year. In December
2011, JAS teamed up with The Little Nell to present JAS Café Downstairs @ The Nell an intimate venue to see top jazz acts every
other weekend in the summer and winter. (www.jazzaspensnowmass.org)
The line-ups at Belly
Up Aspen, an intimate 450-person music club, and the Wheeler
Opera House, Aspen's historic theater and stage, are ever-changing but
always entertaining. Belly Up has featured musical talents such as Widespread
Panic, The Flaming Lips, Jane's Addiction, The Raconteurs, Ben Harper, Edward
Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros, Bassnectar and Snoop Dogg, and Wheeler Opera
House presents its own festivals including the Aspen Laff Festival (Feb. 22 -
25, 2012) and 7809 Aspen Songwriters Festival (March 21 - 24, 2012). In either
location, expect big names in an unforgettable setting. (www.bellyupaspen.com, 970.544.9800; www.wheeleroperahouse.com,
970.920.5770)
IN
THE SPOTLIGHT
Representing the
next generation of contemporary, American ballet, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet was founded by Aspenite Bebe Schweppe
in 1990 and has become nationally recognized for its repertoire,
contemporary-meets-classical choreography, forward-thinking directors, and
skilled dancers.
The company performs in Aspen, in Santa Fe and on national and international
tours, and the summer Aspen
Dance Festival presents performances by internationally renowned dance
companies in July and August. (www.aspensantafeballet.com;
970.925.7175)
Theatre
Aspen, a
homegrown theater company, has received national acclaim and performs a
rotating schedule of productions for both adults and families. The troupe
opened the 2011 season under a new tent in Rio Grande Park and is aiming to
establish a year-round presence in Aspen. The organization's mission is to
entertain, enlighten, enrich, educate and challenge the residents and visitors
of the Roaring Fork Valley through professional-quality theatrical productions,
new play development initiatives and a broad spectrum of educational programs.
(www.theateraspen.org; 970.925.9313)
Aspen
Film, a nonprofit, year-round organization, embarks
upon its 33rd year presenting festivals, film series and youth
programs. Its motto, "Independent by Nature," is imbued in its trademark event,
which celebrates
the independent and innovative filmmakers of past and present. Autumn's golden
leaves combine with the silver screen Oct. 1 - 7, 2012, and film lovers have a
chance to sneak peek the best films in a variety of genres without the
Hollywood hype, velvet ropes or paparazzi. In addition, Aspen Film partners
with the Aspen Institute to present the third annual New Views: Documentaries
& Dialogue, a four-week series of acclaimed documentaries and
post-screening discussions with special guests (mid-July - early August). The
springtime Aspen
Shortsfest is considered one of North America's premier short film and
video festivals (April 2013), and the wintertime Aspen Academy
Screenings add celluloid excitement to Aspen's holiday season with a
whirlwind slate of the year's most talked about films (December 2012). (www.aspenfilm.org; 970.925.6882)
ART
FOR ALL
Anderson
Ranch Arts Center is
a nonprofit, year-round organization serving the personal and professional
development of amateur and professional artists through workshops,
residencies, exhibitions,
tours, lectures, and community outreach programs for artists of all skill
levels. The artists-in-residence and faculty are distinguished professionals in
a wide variety of fields, from printmaking to digital art, and it all takes
place on a historic five-acre Snowmass ranch that's been transformed into a
serene, inspirational campus.
(www.andersonranch.org; 970.923.3181)
Aspen Art Museum is a non-collecting institution
home to contemporary exhibitions and aimed at the promotion of free art with
complimentary admission courtesy of John and Amy Phelan. For the last 30 years,
the AAM
has operated in an historic, converted hydroelectric plant located on the edge
of town, along a picturesque stretch of the Roaring Fork River. In 2011, AAM
purchased land in downtown Aspen, and plans are underway to construct a new,
30,000-square-foot museum. Designed by Japanese architect and humanitarian
Shigeru Ban, the new building will include 12,500 square feet of exhibition
space, a rooftop deck, sculpture garden, educational spaces, bookstore and
shop, café and more. Construction is scheduled to begin spring 2012, and the
new museum is expected to open in about two years. Admission will remain free! (www.aspenartmuseum.org; 970.925.8050)
Aspen's myriad art galleries punctuate downtown streets,
inviting passersby to browse their diverse collections. Baldwin Gallery, a
sleek, open space showcases works by some of the most acclaimed contemporary
artists in the business such as Louise Nevelson, David LaChapelle, Ewan Gibbs,
Todd Hido, James Rosenquist and Jennifer Bartlett. Galerie
Maximillian and Forré Fine Art are Aspen's homes for
the great modern masters including Picasso and Chagall. For inspirational glass
work, Pismo Fine Art Glass offers
original works by Dale Chihuly and other master glass blowers. Elliott Yeary Gallery hosts the work of
fine 19th and 20th century European and American masters
as well as contemporary paintings and sculpture. Just a few minutes away in
Aspen Highlands, LIVASPENART
showcases the diverse talents of emerging local artists from the Roaring Fork
Valley.
PUT
ON A THINKING CAP
Serving
readers and writers since 1976,
the Aspen Writers' Foundation is
Colorado's oldest nonprofit literary center and has established itself among
the country's foremost promoters of the literary arts. Its programs are
cornerstoned by the 36th annual Aspen
Summer Words (June 17 - 22, 2012), a celebration of words and ideas
featuring two complementary components: an intensive writing retreat held in
the mornings and a stimulating literary festival in the afternoons and
evenings. Launched in 2006, Lyrically
Speaking is a story/song series celebrating songwriters and their lyrics,
exploring the written word expressed through music by bringing songwriters to
Aspen to discuss and perform their lyrical creations. For young writers, Scribes
and Scribblers is an inspiring summer camp for kids and teens, and the Weekly
Writers' Groups hone literary talent of any age. (www.aspenwriters.org; 970.925.3122)
The Aspen Institute aims to foster values-based leadership, and
encourages individuals to reflect on the ideals and ideas that define a good
society. Through its seminars,
public policy work, and
the Aspen Institute provides a neutral and balanced venue for discussing and
acting on critical issues. Its centerpiece events include the 5th
annual Aspen Environment Forum
(June 22 - 25, 2012), which will hone in on climate change and "living in the
new normal," and the Aspen Ideas Festival (June 27 - July 3, 2012).
Now in its eighth year, the Aspen Ideas Festival focuses on "ideas
that matter" and offers
a spectacular array of lectures, presentations, debates, and panel discussions
by leading thinkers who span a vast range of critical topics, from the economy
to the environment and science to the arts. Divided into two overlapping
four-day sessions, attendees hear from inspired and provocative writers, public
officials, artists, scientists, business executives, scholars, economists,
foreign policy specialists, entrepreneurs, and leaders of diverse fields from
across the country and around the world. (www.aspeninstitute.org; 970.544.7960)
In
1962, the Aspen Center for Physics
was created to provide a neutral forum to discuss rising concerns about the
impact of technological discoveries to the public. Away from the
responsibilities of scientists' day-to-day projects, with Aspen's serene
mountain landscapes as a backdrop, the Aspen Center for Physics hosts more than
500 physicists selected from a pool of 900 applicants, representing 100 different
institutions during its 16-week summer session (May 20 - Sept. 9, 2012). In
addition to serious collaborations and discussions between attending
physicists, the public is treated to free lectures throughout the summer. (www.aspenphys.org; 970.9252585)
For
media information and images, visit www.aspenchamber.org/media
and contact Promo Communications at 970.925.8480 or
Maureen
Poschman • [email protected]
Sarah-Jane Johnson • [email protected]
Damien
Williamson • [email protected]
For visitor information,
visit www.aspenchamber.org, or call
1.888.290.1324 or 970.925.1940.
Connect with Aspen on Facebook, Twitter (@AspenCO), YouTube and
the blog.
File
5_Aspen_Culture2013.doc
(98.5 KB)