Special Evening Program Saturday, March 18 All The Songs That Nature Sings

Stephen Lias former Artist-in-Resident.

Courtesy Stephen Lias

News Release Date: March 7, 2017

Contact: Kyle Patterson, [phone]

On Saturday, March 18, at 7 p.m. Rocky Mountain National Park will offer a special evening program event in collaboration with the Boulder Philharmonic Orchestra.  Join us at the Beaver Meadows Visitor Center auditorium for an interactive evening with Rocky’s former Artist-in-Resident, adventurer-composer Stephen Lias. Mr. Lias brings a fresh perspective on nature and national parks by thinking about the kinds of questions few visitors would entertain. What happens when the wildness of trail, river, and mountain intrude on the velvet seats and hushed silences of the concert hall? What does a sunrise sound like?  How can violins express the movement of Caribou? This engaging multimedia presentation will explore the many ways that adventure, scenery, fear, history, wildlife and geology can be translated into music. You will hear audio and video excerpts from many pieces both by Lias and others, and you will learn how the worlds of Steinway and Gore-Tex go together like fine coffee and a mountain sunrise.
 
Mr. Lias of Nacogdoches, Texas, is passionate about national parks. He has served as Composer-in-Residence for Rocky Mountain, Glacier Bay, Denali, Glacier, and Gates of the Arctic National Parks. His compositions have been performed in such far-flung places as Australia, Taiwan, Russia, Venezuela, Alaska, Texas and Colorado, and at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall.  As a teacher, Dr. Lias strives to lead his composition students to genuine and artistic musical expression, while incorporating a strong emphasis on contemporary media and cross-disciplinary collaboration. His students have scored films, been commissioned, and published, and are the recipients of regional and national awards. 
 
The March 18 evening program at Rocky Mountain National Park is offered in anticipation of the upcoming premiere with the same name, All the Songs that Nature Sings. As part of a 2016 National Endowment of the Arts Award, the Boulder Philharmonic Orchestra commissioned Mr. Lias to create an orchestral work celebrating the centennial of the National Park Service, as part of the “Imagine Your Parks” initiative. Mr. Lias’ musical composition, accompanied by images of Rocky, will premiere at Macky Auditorium on the CU Boulder campus on March 25, and later at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., on March 28, at the inaugural SHIFT Festival of American Orchestras.  
 
 The Boulder Philharmonic Orchestra is one of Colorado’s premier professional ensembles. They pride themselves in dynamic performances that reflect their community’s own values, creativity, and sense of place. In recent seasons, the Boulder Philharmonic Orchestra has collaborated with 45 local organizations, encompassing arts, science, nature, youth, social services, and more.  They strive to connect ever more people to the inspiring power of orchestral music.
 
To receive more information about Rocky Mountain National Park, please visit www.nps.gov/romo or call the park’s Information Office at 970-586-1206.