THE MOAB MUSIC FESTIVAL IS PLANNING ON MUSIC, AND SO SHOULD YOU! The 28th Season is a “Once-in-a-Lifetime” Experience Everyone Will Need

Running the gamut from chamber music to Latin and jazz, MMF Artistic Director and violist, Leslie Tomkins, and pianist and MMF Music Director Michael Barrett, have devised a singular tie-in to the worldwide celebrations of Ludwig van Beethoven’s 250th birthday. Beloved by audiences, the German master was powerfully inspired by composers who came before him, and had a seismic influence on succeeding generations of musical creators in so many genres. Beethoven’s varied interests – including nature – and immense breadth of imagination will be featured in works both famous and rare, amidst one of the world’s most magnificent landscapes.

MUSICAL RAFT TRIPS
The season kicks off with a journey for lovers of music, nature, and outdoor adventure: a custom 3-day/2-night Westwater Canyon Musical Raft Trip through the Colorado River’s Ruby-Horsethief and Westwater Canyons, beginning on Monday, August 31 at 7am. Living up to the Festival’s reputation as “an adventurer’s paradise” (Smithsonian magazine), voyagers will spend part of the time drifting leisurely at the river’s pace, followed by a morning of exciting whitewater rapids like Little Hummer, Funnel Falls, Last Chance, and the famous Skull Rapid formed as the Colorado River flows through a narrow black granite gorge. Patrons will enjoy daily concerts by two Festival superstars– cellist Jay Campbell and violinist Ayano Ninomiya – in extraordinary settings, as well as swimming, walks, and dining experiences. After bringing their inner rhythms in tune with the river, participants return to Moab on the last evening, Wednesday, September 2. Outfitted by Sheri Griffith River Expeditions.

 GROTTO CONCERTS

An exhilarating 45-minute jet boat ride down the Colorado River will bring listeners to “nature’s own concert hall” (The New York Times) – a pristine, acoustically-perfect wilderness grotto carved from the surrounding red rocks. Imagine this grotto as a sonic marriage between the Sistine Chapel and Carnegie Hall, set within one of the most stunning natural settings to be found anywhere. The first of three signature Grotto Concerts, on Thursday, September 3, features acclaimed pianist-composer Michael Brown performing Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony in a brilliant, devilishly-difficult transcription for solo piano, as arranged by the towering pianist Franz Liszt. This rarely heard tour-de-force will be paired with some of Mozart’s music for two pianists playing together at one instrument. At the next grotto performance, on Wednesday, September 9, Brown returns to dazzle the audience with Beethoven’s monumental “Hammerklavier” Sonata, long considered unplayable, along with works by Robert Schumann for piano, four-hands. The final grotto adventure on Monday, September 14, the Festival finale, is Music of Faith and Belief, devoted to music by Johann Sebastian Bach. One of Bach’s magnum opuses, The Well-Tempered Clavier, was a lifelong touchstone for Beethoven from the time he learned the work by memory by age 12! Paying homage to Beethoven’s admiration for his older German compatriot, this program intersperses several of Bach’s sacred chorales with American spirituals for what is likely to be a transcendent experience.

STAR HALL CONCERTS

Following the final Grotto Concert, when some patrons return to town, those adventurers who do not want their experience to end will set out on a custom 4-day/3-night Cataract Canyon Musical Raft Trip (September 14 through 17) on the Colorado River for yet another encounter of a lifetime. Setting off by raft for a “place where the awe comes easy” (KSL-TV), this trip takes the notion of wonder and astonishment to a whole other level. Along the river by day and at camp each night, the trip features daily concerts by extraordinary violinists Francisco Fullana and Cindy Wu (who will also play viola), and cellist Clancy Newman, as well as fine food and wine, and lively companionship. World renowned naturalist John Weisheit puts the surroundings in context, guiding guests to petroglyphs and petrified wood, and providing deep insights on geology and the Colorado River. Starting in flat-water and progressing to an exhilarating run through world-famous Cataract Canyon, the river portion of the trip ends at Lake Powell’s Hite Marina, where participants catch a scenic flight with Redtail Air Adventures back to Moab, over Canyonlands National Park and the Colorado River, returning late on Thursday evening, September 17. Outfitted by Sheri Griffith River Expeditions.

Two performances take place at one of Moab’s landmark venues, the elegant Star Hall. On Friday, September 4 at 7pm, RUSSIA IN THE US looks at the immense impact of Russian émigrés and visitors in the U.S., who transformed the music world, including two generations of American concert and theater composers. The program ranges widely from works by Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Serge Prokofiev, Sergei Rachmaninoff, and Igor Stravinsky to novelties by Vernon Duke, Harold Arlen, Irving Berlin, and George Gershwin. On Friday, September 11 at 6pm, Octomania! features Dmitri Shostakovich’s early, quirky work for eight strings, alongside the work on which it was based, Mendelssohn’s beloved Octet. Beethoven’s music makes also an appearance on this program with several of his works for cello and piano.

MUSIC HIKES

At each of four invigorating Music Hikes, explorers will discover Moab’s natural wonders, as they meet at the Grand County Middle School bright and early at 8am and are transported to stunning, surprise locations for an hour-long concert. On Saturday, September 5, hikers journey to a majestic spot in a secluded canyon, ideal for acoustic music, to hear Beethoven’s reflective and visionary String Quintet known as the “Storm” and Bohuslav Martinů’s virtuosic Duo for Violin and Viola. The second hike on Sunday, September 6, at a private protected canyon, will feature the Festival’s virtuoso strings captivating listeners with works by Johann Sebastian Bach, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and John Corigliano (his Red Violin Caprices, from the acclaimed movie The Red Violin). On Saturday, September 12, trekkers will venture to Moab’s own meditative inner landscape for Everything That Rises, when the JACK Quartet, “superheroes of the new music world” (The Boston Globe) offers a work by Pulitzer Prize-winner John Luther Adams, who approaches nature as a canvas for his extended sonic explorations, and gives new meaning to the phrase “trail-blazing!” On the season’s final Music Hike on Sunday, September 13, adventurers travel to another secret, equally stunning wilderness site for String Theory, where the Festival’s virtuoso strings lead an excursion though music from Bach to today and from the lowest tones on the double bass to the highest pitches of the violin.

Know before you go: The hike requires a moderate level of stamina, agility, and comfort with uneven footing and potentially some exposure on slick rock. Hiking/trail shoes are required. Comfortable outdoor clothing for a desert environment is recommended. Hiking poles are welcome. Please remember to hydrate and bring a water bottle.

RED CLIFFS LODGE

And to kick back after two of the hikes or let loose (or a little of both!), drop into Red Cliffs Lodge for a pair of toe-tapping, finger-snapping evenings of sheer delight. On Saturday, September 5 at 6pm, the Cuban master clarinetist and saxophonist Paquito D’Rivera, a multi-Grammy-winner and Festival favorite, leads his virtuoso quintet – joined by the Festival strings – to the banks of the Colorado River for My Heart is in Havana, reveling in Cuba’s irresistible melodic, rhythmic, and emotional imagination. And after the hike on Sunday, September 6 at 6pm, The Manhattan Transfer, which made music history winning Grammys in popular and jazz categories in the same year, offers hits in its signature pop, jazz, R&B, rock & roll, and swing styles, along with songs from its newest recording, The Junction.

 LABOR DAY EXTRAVAGANZA

There will be plenty of electricity to go around at the Festival’s free annual Rocky Mountain Power Family Concert on Monday, September 7 at 2pm, when two powerhouses – Paquito D’Rivera Quintet and The Manhattan Transfer – share the stage. Kids, entire families, and picnics are welcome to catch the (heat) wave, which will also be ignited when superstar violinist Charles Yang, cellist Nicholas Canellakis, baritone Justin Austin, and pianists Michael Barrett, Michael Brown, and Peter Dugan join the fun. The Festival expresses its gratitude to our sponsor, Rocky Mountain Power, for helping the series keep the lights on!

PRIVATE HOMES

Picture being at a Private Ranch on the banks of the Colorado River, with great food, good company, and an eclectic mix of jazz, classical, and original music from two of the most versatile and electrifying young musicians of their generation. On Tuesday, September 8 at 5:30pm Time for Three’s Charles Yang, who “plays classical violin with the charisma of a rock star” (The Boston Globe), joins the new host of NPR’s popular From the Top, pianist Peter Dugan, and his “feats of alarming dexterity” (San Francisco Chronicle) for a sizzling, virtuosic romp, setting off musical fireworks that are likely to rival the pyrotechnics that close out the evening, which is a benefit for the Festival.

On Thursday, September 10, 5:30pm, one of the Moab area’s most exclusive homes is the setting for a special celebration of Beethoven’s 250th birthday. Beethoven as He Heard His Music lets a select audience hear the master’s music on the instruments on which it was performed during his lifetime. String instruments and a piano of Beethoven’s era reveal the secrets of period performance practice, with the music being performed in an intimate salon. The concert is followed by an exquisite dinner and wonderful conversation with the artists and other guests.

… AND BACKSTAGE, AT THE RANCH, ON THE RIVER, AND IN SCHOOL
Satisfy your curiosity about what goes on behind the scenes of producing a concert by sitting in on an Open Rehearsal with Festival Music Director Michael Barrett and other artists on Saturday, September 12 at 1pm. Watch, listen, and get a sneak peek at the music to be performed on the new Floating Concert on September 13 (see below).

Soak in one of the breathtaking sunsets at Sorrel River Ranch Resort & Spa on September 12 at 6pm, and heat up the night with the jazzy mischief-makers known as The Hot Sardines. With over a year on the Billboard Jazz charts, over 20-million streams on Spotify in over 90 countries, and a rave from The Times of London about the group’s “witty showmanship,” Moab audiences are in for pure delight!

Kicking off a new event for 2020 festival-goers on Sunday, September 13 at 5pm, patrons will sip cocktails and hors d’oeuvres before boarding the mighty Queen for a Floating Concert. The low-speed open-air boat will take listeners (and a grand piano!) up the Colorado River, where it will float silently while the musicians play a private concert of music by Claude Debussy and Franz Schubert, on the river surrounded by canyon walls at sunset. A 7:30pm return allows for an early evening or dinner following this magical experience.

Extensive educational outreach is integral to the Festival’s activities, and artists will visit all the Grand County School students and The Moab Charter School on September 4 and 9 for assemblies for the high school and middle school students. The Festival’s ongoing educational programs goes beyond performances for students, and includes scholarships, teacher support, instrument purchases, and more, giving back to the community which has supported this acclaimed series for over two decades.

Week I artists: violinists Ayano Ninomiya, Pamela Frank, Arnaud Sussmann; violists Cynthia Phelps, Leslie Tomkins; cellists Jay Campbell, Ronald Thomas; pianists Michael Barrett, Michael Brown; Justin Austin, baritone.

Paquito D’Rivera Quintet: Paquito D’Rivera, clarinet, saxophone; Hamish Smith, bass; Diego Urcola, trumpet, trombone; Eric Doob, drums, percussion; Alex Brown, piano.

The Manhattan Transfer: Cheryl Bentyne, Trist Curless, Alan Paul, Janis Siegel, vocals; Ross Pederson, drums; Boris Koslov, acoustic, electric bass; Yaron Gershovsky, piano, electric keyboard

Week 2 artists: Wviolinists Francisco Fullana, Kristin Lee, Christopher Otto, Austin Wulliman, Charles Yang; Violists Cindy Wu (& violin), John Pickford Richards, Leslie Tomkins; cellists Jay Campbell, Nicholas Canellakis, Clancy Newman, Tanya Tomkins; Robert Black, bass; pianists Michael Barrett, Michael Brown, Peter Dugan (& electric keyboard), Eric Zivian, (& fortepiano); Justin Austin, baritone.

JACK Quartet: Christopher Otto & Austin Wulliman, violins; John Pickford Richards, viola; Jay Campbell, cello

The Hot Sardines: Elizabeth Bougerol, co-leader, vocals; Evan Palazzo, pianist, bandleader; David Berger, drums, percussion; J. Walter Hawkes, trombone; Noah Hocker, trumpet; A.C. Lincoln, tap dancer; Jason Mercer, bass; Nick Myers, tenor saxophone, clarinet, conga.

For more information about the Festival or to purchase tickets for the 28th annual Moab Music Festival go to the website, or telephone the Box Office at (435) 259-7003. You may also visit the Festival Office at 58 East 300 South, Moab, UT 84532.

For more information about the outfitter for the Westwater Canyon Musical Raft Trip the Cataract Canyon Musical Raft Trip visit Sheri Griffith River Expeditions.

www.moabmusicfest.org