Boulder Bach Festival

Background Statement

Boulder Bach Festival (BBF) began in 1981, celebrating the life and music of J.S. Bach. Since that first season, BBF has evolved from a weekend of concerts to a full season of diverse concert programs, an array of free outreach activities, lecture presentations, in-school events, and collaborative events at a variety of venues in Boulder, Denver, Longmont, Broomfield and elsewhere on the Front Range.

Unique among Colorado's performing arts organizations and worldwide, BBF navigates the waters of music history with the music of J.S. Bach as a compass. In addition to presenting internationally-acclaimed soloists in collaboration with BBF's CORE artists in extraordinary performances of baroque music, recent seasons have also featured new work by living composers alongside resurrected music of forgotten composers—across time and cultures. This dialogue expands our mission such that Bach-in-context is part of a larger vision, an inclusive musical celebration that examines history, literature, and instrumental/vocal technical/stylistic developments, looking from Bach to centuries earlier, and from Bach to the present day.

BBF has a zero-debt history and is driven and monitored by a strategic plan that reflects the commitment and interests of its stakeholders. It is a seven-member, mission-driven board that is focused on the strategic plan, updated every three years. For the past two years, BBF has been raising funds for a Sustainability Reserves Account, with the goal of stabilizing the organization further.

Bringing Colorado's musicians together with those from across the nation—and beyond, results in a rich conversation between the artists, further fulfilling their lives as well as contributing to the richness of the concert presentation. University graduate students and young professionals develop their skills in a variety of experiences offered, in part due to the artists BBF brings to the Front Range: students and graduates perform alongside these acclaimed musicians.

Upcoming projects include recording video in March with one of the world's leading classical soloists, violinist Vadim Gluzman. He will work alongside our CORE ensemble, including Fellowship Artists. Additionally, in February, pianist Mina Gajic and violinist Zachary Carrettin lead a program that presents works of Bach in alternation with new work by women composers of Iceland, offering our audiences a unique perspective on feeling and form in music across the ages. All of the composers chosen for this project are environmentally-focused, bringing worlds together in music creation and performance. We honor J.S. Bach by investing in the living composers of our own time.

This season we present baroque oratorio, concertos and more in works by Handel, Strozzi, Vivaldi, LeClaire, Leonarda, Biber, and J.S. Bach, while also presenting works by living Estonian and Icelandic composers. We've created a new education series for adults: Across Time Across Cultures events are presented at Dairy Arts Center in the week prior to each main season concert. Topics range from "Variation in Music from Bach to The Beatles," and "Holiday Songs Across the Ages," to "Examining New Voices of Iceland," and "Comparing Baroque Period and Modern Instruments Side-By-Side."

Our new Fellowship Artist Vocal Ensemble will study, teach, and perform in a variety of styles and contexts, always remunerated fully for every service. BBF's commitment to remunerating every artist for every service—regardless of whether they are renowned soloists, local faculty, freelancers, or current graduate students—is one of the many ways that we are contributing to the art music landscape in our region. By investing in music experts, the way we all do when we see a dentist or an attorney, we are ensuring a nuanced and fascinating dialogue; we are offering audiences the highest level esthetic experience, presented by inspired experts in the field. This can only continue with your support.