Musical comfort and contemplation – CPR Classical’s picks for November concerts

Not only are we watching the nighttime steal away the daylight hours day by day, the warmer fall weather has already made it feel like a long season. But the beauty of late fall is upon us, and the music of the upcoming month reflects the comfort, vibrancy and light we love to add to our lives this time of year. Here’s CPR Classical’s picks for November.

Hear many of these groups and others every day on Colorado Spotlight and discover more Colorado ensembles here.

Boulder Chamber Orchestra, Vivaldi and Pergolesi
November 1, Campus Commons Performance Hall, Greeley
November 2, Boulder Adventist Church

Eat your heart out “Four Seasons,” there’s a new quartet of Vivaldi concertos in town. Well, not exactly new, or a set of four – Vivaldi’s 12 “L'estro armonico” was his first published collection of concertos. The Boulder Chamber Orchestra and violinist Zachary Carrettin (director of the Boulder Bach Fest), present four of these concertos for the second concert of their 20th anniversary season.

Plus, the second half of the concert is Pergolesi’s sorrowful "Stabat Mater," not only a portrayal of Mary’s grief at the suffering of Jesus but a work Pergolesi wrote on his own deathbed.

Fort Collins Symphony, Tales of Falling Leaves and Royal Rivers
November 2, 7:30 p.m., Lincoln Center

The trees aren’t the only thing with color on full display. The Fort Collins Symphony presents the warmth and vibrancy of some of our favorite autumnal music, plus a fall adventure of a lesser-known work to get you out of a mid-season rut. It’s the familiarity of Vivaldi’s “Autumn” and Handel’s “Water Music,” plus “Concerto Grosso 1985” by American composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, written in honor of Handel’s 300th birthday.

Symphony of the Rockies, Agree to Disagree!
November 8, 11 a.m., Legacy Campus Theater, Lone Tree

I’m thoroughly enchanted by this synopsis from the recently rebranded Arapahoe Philharmonic: It’s a duel between Mozart and Snooty, the Professor of Musical Snobbery, to see whose musical taste is best! You and the whole family can help these two battle it out to see which music is best! But maybe, just maybe, the best music is the harmonies we created along the way.

Boulder Philharmonic, Moons and Planets
November 10, 4 p.m., Mackey Auditorium

Explore the solar system with the famous suite “The Planets” in a 150th birthday bash for composer Gustav Holst. And the Boulder Phil pays special attention to Saturn, Jupiter and Neptune, with “Moons of the Giants,” a new piece from Colorado composer and CU alum John Heins.

More celestial fun out in the lobby with pre-concert activities and visitors including the Fiske Planetarium, Black Swift Technologies, National Solar Observatory and more.

Guest conductor Scott O’Neil, host of CPR Classical’s Behind the Baton, is the cherry on top of the star-studded (planet-studded?) concert.

Walden Chamber Music Society, The Three B’s
November 10, 3:00 p.m., SteamPlant Event Center, Salida

There are quite a few “B’s” in classical music. Perhaps the best known trio of B’s is Brahms, Beethoven and Bach, and boy, do they make for a good-looking concert. It’s the first concert of Walden Chamber Music’s 20th season in Colorado, and includes a pre concert talk with Jo Boatwright in her 42nd season as artistic director.

Clyfford Still Music in the Galleries: Sankyō Trio
November 10, 12:00 p.m., Clyfford Still Museum

A concert outside of the European classical tradition. Hear and learn about traditional Japanese instruments, the koto and shamisen, amidst the backdrop of Clyfford Still’s abstract expressionist art. Hear music from ancient to contemporary with the Trio, and it’s a family friendly event to boot.

Colorado Symphony, an even more American Rhapsody in Blue
November 16, 7:30 p.m., November 17, 1 p.m.

The Colorado Symphony makes it nigh impossible to pick just one concert – November alone is decorated with Saint-Saens’s "Organ Symphony" and Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2. But my pick for the month will inevitably be a great experience: banjo player Bela Fleck performing Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue.” What a way to celebrate the 100th year of this American hit! Gershwin already brought the jazz to classical, now Fleck sprinkles some bluegrass in there, too. Rachmaninoff’s "Symphonic Dances," Carlos Simon’s "Four Black American Dances," and Fleck’s own music make up a very compelling, American program.

Laudamus Chamber Chorale, Faure’s Requiem
November 17, Griffin Concert Hall, Fort Collins

“Celebrating” death isn’t always the right way to approach the topic, but it certainly is a good approach to Gabriel Faure's “Requiem.” Faure himself said, “My Requiem has been said to express no fear of death; it has been called a lullaby of death. But that is how I feel about death: a happy deliverance, a reaching for eternal happiness rather than a mournful passing away.”

It seems only appropriate for the Laudamus Chamber Chorale to honor the 100th anniversary of Faure’s death with his “Requiem,” accompanied by compelling works for string quartet by American composers Florence Price, Jocelyn Hagen and Hans Bridger Heruth.

Friends of Chamber Music, Dover Quartet
November 17, 4:00 p.m., Newman Center

We love returning friends – welcome back to Denver, Dover Quartet. This time, it’s an American program to the core. The headline is certainly Jerod Impichchaachaaha' Tate’s "Woodland Songs," co-commissioned by several presenters including Friends of Chamber Music, inspired by various clans of animals within the Chickasaw Nation. Tate also arranged a song by Indigenous/Black/Scottish composer Pura Fé for the quartet. Dvorak’s "American Quartet" adds an anchor of familiarity to this adventure.

BONUS: A discussion with a composer we adore – Jerod Impichchaachaahá Tate at the Denver Public Library, Hadley Branch on November 17.

St. Martin’s Chamber Choir, A Charles Villiers Stanford Tribute
November 24, 4 p.m., Augustana Lutheran Church or streaming online

Charles Villiers Stanford was prolific in his vocal music; he wrote nine settings of the Magnificat alone. We’re reaping the benefits of his hard work with a concert by St. Martin’s Chamber Choir for the 100th anniversary of his death. Music Director Timothy Krueger has curated a concert celebrating the glory of Stanford’s Magnificat settings in honor this anniversary and to prepare us for the Advent season.

Looking ahead:

• November 30 & December 1 – Boulder Philharmonic: The Nutcracker
• December 4 – CPR Presents: Awadagin Pratt with Friends of Chamber Music
• December 6 – Littleton Symphony: Joyful Celebration
• December 6 – Loveland Orchestra: Holiday Portraits
• December 7 – Ars Nova: Light/Shadow
• December 7 – Colorado Symphony: A Holiday Evening with Leslie Odom, Jr.