2026 Highlights
Some of our favorite moments from our 40th Anniversary Season in 2026
A season that will truly go down as one of the biggest and best yet, our 2026 season featured four remarkable weeks of incredible musical experiences, all set against the backdrop of beautiful Durango, Colorado, and the surrounding regions throughout July 2026!
From the very first performances on our mobile stage in early July to every standing ovation at the Community Concert Hall, each week brought awe-inspiring musical moments unlike anything else Southwest Colorado has to offer.
This year was especially meaningful as we celebrated our own 40th anniversary, as well as the 150th & 250th birthdays of Colorado and the United States, led by our Artistic Director, Vadim Gluzman, and 2026 Jill Ward Principal Conductor-in-Residence, Andrew Litton.
They, along with our fabulous Festival Orchestra musicians (and all of our incredible audiences!), created an enthusiastic and memorable celebration of four decades of Music in the Mountains!
Read on to relive some of the highlights and magical moments from our 2026 summer classical music festival, and discover all that makes Music in the Mountains so fantastic year after year!
Kicking Off a Momentous Year in January at the Snowdown Light Parade!
We were honored this year to have been selected by Visit Colorado as the recognized event for Southwest Colorado as part of the statewide Colorado 150/250 Celebration Initiative.
In January 2026, we officially helped kick off the statewide Initiative, which celebrated the 150th anniversary of Colorado and the 250th anniversary of the United States, with a stunning drone show over the Snowdown Light Parade!
This celebratory start to 2026 helped usher in the momentous year ahead, recognizing the 150/250 anniversaries and our own milestone season ahead!
A New & Inspiring Program: The Violin Academy with Vadim Gluzman
This year, eleven incredible young violinists from around the world (including two from right here in Southwest Colorado) made up the inaugural class of the Violin Academy with Vadim Gluzman.
This new educational initiative, created in partnership with the Arkday Fomin Scholarship Fund of the North Shore Chamber Music Festival, was such a meaningful reminder of the importance of nurturing young artists. Arkady Fomin began his legacy here in 1997, creating something special for all who attended. The Academy will continue his vision, and help bring the next generation of violinists to Durango, just as he previously did.
For an entire week, these young artists learned together, performed together, and shared a week of intensive study and artistic mentorship (all while having some Colorado fun along the way), culminating in a showcase concert on July 19th, “Rising Stars with Vadim Gluzman.”
We were in awe of this first class of exceptional young musicians, and feel so grateful to have created the backdrop for this wonderful experience. We cannot wait to see where each of their careers takes them, and hope to see them all back on the Music in the Mountains’ stage in the future!
Week 1: Our Free Community Concert Series on Our Mobile Stage Opens the Festival!
Our favorite way to kick off our Festival, our Community Concert Series once again brought free, family-friendly concerts on our custom-built mobile stage to Durango and our neighboring communities. From July 9th-11th, we hosted nine free concerts, drawing thousands of attendees and record numbers to concerts in Durango, Bayfield, Ignacio, Pagosa Springs, and Mancos.
This year, we welcomed three different fantastic ensembles to the mobile stage: the Cerus Sax Quartet, Sprezzatura, and the Katarina String Quartet. These three days of performances not only kick off our Festival each year, they also allow Music in the Mountains to spread our reach, bringing world-class musicians to venues around the region, and fostering a love for classical music among all our communities in a way that is accessible and engaging for all ages!
Week 2: An Intimate Candlelight Experience, the Energy of Eileen Ivers and the Brigideens, and a 40th Birthday Celebration to Remember!
The first official weekend of performances by members of our Festival Orchestra took place July 17-19, starting with our beloved Candlelight Concert. This intimate chamber concert featured Artistic Director Vadim Gluzman and 2026 Young Artist-in-Residence Julian Rhee on the violin, joined by members of our Festival Orchestra as they performed onstage in the glow of 2,000 candles.
Following that memorable experience, longtime friend of the Festival, Grammy-winning and Emmy-nominated fiddle player Eileen Ivers took to the stage with the female-led roots ensemble Brigideens on Saturday, July 18th. It was a lively evening of energetic music and amazing artistry, and a reminder of the range of genres that Music in the Mountains brings to the area each summer!
The second weekend of our Festival wrapped up with a 40th Birthday Celebration unlike any other at “Happy 40th Birthday! From Bach to Benny Goodman.” Our Chamber Orchestra took to the Community Concert Hall stage, delighting our audience with everything from Benny Goodman’s “Four Standards” to Shostakovich’s Chamber Symphony in C minor to (of course!) variations on “Happy Birthday!”
Week 3: Everything from Ice Cream to Diamonds, with a few Dancing Queens in between!
Week three of our 2026 Festival opened up on July 21st with our sold out “Sundaes on Tuesday with Music for Dessert,” this year featuring the duo Cold Chocolate. A little Southwest Colorado rainstorm couldn’t dampen this Festival favorite event, as audiences enjoyed a beautiful mountain backdrop, delicious sundaes, and a memorable performance, all held at the beautiful River Bend Ranch just outside of Durango.
The third week of this year’s Festival continued with another audience favorite: our longtime (and much-loved!) Family Concert, this year featuring a wonderful performance of “Tchaikovsky Discovers America” by Classical Kids Live! With a pre-concert picnic, games, and this engaging musical performance designed for young audiences, this is an event that continues to bring families and the next generation of music lovers together each year to enjoy a special evening of fun, food, and musical discovery.
Following those two wonderful events, our Chamber Orchestra put on a dazzling show at “Mozart & Diamonds” on Friday, July 24th! The evening featured moving performances of Barber’s “Adagio for Strings” and Grieg’s “Holberg Suite;” a mesmerizing performance of Daugherty’s “Diamond in the Rough” by Vadim Gluzman, 2026 Young Artist-in-Residence Julian Rhee, and percussionist Trevor Barroero; and a stunning performance of Mozart’s iconic Sinfonia Concertante.
How did we follow up that incredible evening? With something completely different and danceable: “Dancing Queens!” Describing this unbelievably fun event as the feel-good dance party of the summer is an understatement, as audiences danced in the aisles and sang along while guest conductor Chelsea Gallo took to the podium, joined by our full Festival orchestra and two stunning guest vocalists. Featuring everything from Diana Ross to ABBA, it was a fun-filled evening celebrating the joy and energy of the world’s most beloved pop anthems!
Finally, the third weekend of our 2026 Festival closed out with our full Festival Orchestra under the baton of 2026 Jill Ward Principal Conductor-in-Residence, Andrew Litton, at “Litton Conducts Beethoven’s Eroica.” Our 2026 Young Artist in Residence, Julian Rhee, capped off his summer residency with an incredible performance in Barber’s Violin Concerto, followed by a performance to remember from our Festival Orchestra of Beethoven’s masterpiece, the monumental “Eroica” symphony.
Week 4: One-of-a-Kind Experiences, Mardi Gras Comes to Southwest Colorado, and a Finale We’ll Never Forget!
The final week of our 2026 summer Festival kicked off with two unique and intimate events: “Pizza & Piazzolla: A Musical Portrait of Astor Piazzolla,” and “Andrew Litton – A Life in Music.” On July 28th, audiences at the Liberty Theatre in Pagosa Springs were treated to an immersive and musical journey through Piazzolla’s tangos and musical gems, presented by violinist Philippe Quint and pianist Jun Cho. Paired with pizza and a great cause (20% of every ticket supported Pagosa Springs youth music scholarships!), the evening was a blend of virtuosic playing and storytelling.
Following that fabulous evening, audiences were treated to another incredible journey, this time through the musical career of our very own 2026 Conductor-in-Residence, Andrew Litton! Held at the Strater Hotel and featuring a gourmet farm-to-table meal, this exclusive evening featured reminiscing and music from Maestro Litton and Vadim Gluzman as they looked back on their lives and history together.
And after an unbelievable month of music, our 2026 Festival and 40th Anniversary Season came to a spectacular close with our final weekend of music from July 31st-August 2nd!
At “Gluzman Plays Bruch,” our Festival Orchestra, led by Maestro Andrew Litton, performed O Beautiful Unity, a newly commissioned work by Colorado composer Leigha Amick, in honor of the 250th and 150th anniversaries of the United States and Colorado. The evening also featured a stunning performance of Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1, featuring Vadim Gluzman, violin, followed by Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 2.
The final weekend then transported our audiences to Bourbon Street, at “Pops Night: Mardi Gras Madness!” at the Sky Ute Event Center. Longtime friend of Music in the Mountains and Pops favorite Byron Stripling brought his irresistible blend of New Orleans jazz and charisma to the stage alongside our Festival Orchestra. Paired with a delicious dinner and fun cocktail hour, Pops Night once again showed why it remains one of Southwest Colorado’s most anticipated events!
Finally, we closed out the 40th year of Music in the Mountains and our 2026 season in truly sensational fashion at our sold-out 2026 Grand Finale on August 2nd! The evening opened with Bernstein’s Three Dance Episodes from On the Town, followed by a truly memorable experience when Maestro Andrew Litton joined our Festival Orchestra for an iconic performance of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue. The orchestra then closed out the full festival with Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9, “From the New World.” It was a remarkable evening, and an incredible way to close out an equally remarkable 40th anniversary season!
Celebrating Our Donors and Supporters with Two Special Events
In addition to all of these incredible ticketed experiences, we were proud to host two exclusive donor events in 2026 that celebrated the incredible community of supporters who make Music in the Mountains possible. Our annual Summer Soirée at the Glacier Club offered an elegant evening of live music, delicious food, and community gathering in a breathtaking mountain setting, featuring an intimate performance by Quarteto Nuevo.
Later, the Closing Night Reception at the Gable House provided a beautiful opportunity to reflect on the season’s successes and express gratitude to those whose generosity sustains the Festival year after year. These special gatherings highlight the strong spirit of community and shared purpose that make Music in the Mountains so exceptional!
It’s the music. It’s the musicians. It’s the experience.
As we take a moment to look back on this amazing milestone season and 40th anniversary celebration, we also want to celebrate everyone who has been a part of Music in the Mountains, today and for the past 40 years! It is your enthusiasm, your passion, and your love of Music in the Mountains that defines the joy our Festival brings to the community each and every year.
Thank you for being part of this phenomenal summer, and part of the Music in the Mountains family. We’re already looking forward to what next July will bring, and to experiencing it all with you together once again!
Mark your calendars and join us July 8 - August 1, 2027!
