Great Weekend Getaways - Mountain Magic

Mountain Music Festivals

By Eric Lindberg

Earl Scruggs at RockyGrass 2006

Summertime in the mountains delights the ears. Tumbling streams, warbling birdsong, wind whistling down the canyons — every day is an open-air concert.

But the Colorado Rockies also happen to be home to numerous summer music festivals which offer everything from bluegrass, folk and blues to classical and jazz. And each festival takes place in a high-altitude setting far from any urban center. Sizzling music, delicious food and sweet alpine air make these festivals high notes in a Colorado summer overflowing with mountain melodies. Here is a sampling of three:

Information: Colorado Music Alliance, www.coloradomusicalliance.com.

Aspen Music Festival, June 22-Aug. 21. Classical music doesn't need to be a highbrow, black-tie affair, and the dynamic Aspen Music Festival is proof. Founded in 1949 with the belief that combining art and nature encourages the growth of the human spirit, this internationally renowned festival pre-sents some of the world's most accomplished classical musicians in a lovely alpine setting.

Over a nine-week period attendees can choose from more than 200 events, including chamber and contemporary music, orchestral concerts, classes, lectures and kids' programs. Performances take place in concert halls, churches and a permanent tent structure with excellent acoustics. A quarter of the events are free, and there's always free seating on the lawn outside the tent. At each venue, black-tie and designer dresses mingle comfortably with jeans and hiking boots.

Information: 970-925-9042, www.aspenmusicfestival.com.

Winter Park Jazz Festival, July 21-22. When summer returns to Winter Park Resort, sunlight and melting snow transform the frozen ski runs into grassy slopes perfect for reclining and gazing across the valley to the Continental Divide. Add a warm weekend and some of the hottest tunes on the planet, and you get the Winter Park Jazz Festival.

The festival is held midsummer at the base of the ski mountain. Jazz cats spread out across a luxuriant hillside that just months before swarmed with skiers. On the stage below, rising young jazz lions and international stars lay down smoking riffs all day and into the night.

Information: www.winterpark-info.com; Winter Park-Fraser Valley Chamber, 800-903-7275.

RockyGrass Festival, Lyons, July 29-31. For much of the year Lyons is a sleepy drive-through town on the way to Rocky Mountain National Park. But for one weekend each summer the heart-plucking bluegrass strains of fiddle, banjo and mandolin fill the air at RockyGrass Festival.

Now in its 33rd year, RockyGrass celebrates this truly American musical genre. Stellar performers like Doc Watson and Ricky Skaggs mix with up-and-coming artists for three days of soaring melodies, lonesome ballads, and foot-stompin' tunes. Off-stage, players gather for impromptu sessions to trade licks and tell stories.

Around midday folks relax on camp chairs and inner tubes in the lazy St. Vrain River. Soft summer breezes tickle the cottonwood leaves as haunting harmonies drift over the water. Bluegrass doesn't get any finer.

Information: 303-823-0848, 800-624-2422; www.bluegrass.com/rockygrass/.

Please note: This article is from our archives and some facts may have changed. Please contact your nearest AAA office and ask to speak to a travel counselor to update you on the latest travel information.

Eric Lindberg is a Lakewood-based travel writer and photographer who has written for EnCompass on numerous occasions.