Boulder United States

Jeremy Pound admires both the mountains and the plains as he explores the various delights of this year’s Colorado Music Festival

- Jeremy Pound

Boulder. Great name for a place. It derives from Boulder Creek, which cascades down from the Rocky Mountains, through the city and into the Colorado plains. Every July, Boulder holds a Tube To Work Day in which hundreds of employees head down the Creek’s fast-flowing waters in giant inner tubes, an activity that is also available to water-loving visitors all year round – I seriously wish I’d brought a wetsuit with me.

But I’m not here for splashy thrill-seeking. I’m here for the Colorado Music Festival, which takes place from the end of June to the beginning of August. Founded in 1976 by the conductor Giora Bernstein, the festival began life as a five-concert chamber music event, but has since expanded in both quantity and scope: 2022’s 21 concerts involve both string quartets and, alongside guest soloists, the symphony-sized Colorado Music Festival Orchestra (CMFO), made up of players from major ensembles across the US. The Colorado Music Festival website proudly displays a list of world and US premieres, and a commitment to new music remains key – John Adams, no less, has been in town this year as composer-in-residence.