Professor Ryan Banagale sits at piano, smiling joyously and surrounded by students.

The Music Department hummed with the activity of innovative classes and dynamic performances in Block 2. We hope you can join us for more fun in Block 3!

UPCOMING CONCERTS

Professor Ofer Ben-Amots sits at piano and peaks through lid and piano strings.

Tapestry of Sound: Marking Five Decades of Composition by Ofer Ben-Amots
Thursday, Oct. 23 at 7 p.m.
Packard Hall
Professor Ofer Ben-Amots interweaves folk elements with contemporary textures and imaginative orchestration to create a haunting dynamic tension that defines his musical language. FREE

Live from Packard Hall banner with swirly music staff, treble cleff and music notes.

Live from Packard Hall: CC Faculty Artists Concert
Tuesday, Nov. 4 at 3 p.m.
Packard Hall
An array of chamber music, from Baroque to Contemporary, performed by our very own CC Music Faculty. FREE

Piano keys with Music at Midday banner overlayed.

Music at Midday
Wednesday, Nov. 5 at 12:15 p.m.
Packard Hall
Don’t miss this opportunity to see the variety and talent of CC students as they perform instrumental and vocal works. FREE

BLOCK 2 HIGHLIGHTS

Music and Gender in Jane Austen’s England
On Monday, Oct. 13, students from Professor Dr. Lidia Chang’s Music and Gender in Jane Austen’s England turned Bemis Hall into an authentic, Regency-era salon, complete with music, dancing, poetry, live figure drawing, and good conversation. The class was joined by special musical guests, Laura Klein (CU Boulder), and Elisa Wicks (CC) for accompanied sonatas and concertos by Clementi, Schobert, and J.C. Bach. This event is becoming Chang’s favorite tradition in the Music Department, and she looks forward to hosting more salon concerts with her students in the future.

traditional printing blocks set up for salon invitation

students at the printing press watching printer set up blocks

Students created salon invitations at the CC Printing Press.

finished salon concert invitation states: Salon Concert, M__ is requested to attend the salon at Bemis Great Hall. on Monday, 13th of October, at 7:00 P.M., Hosted by L. Chang & Students. October, 2025.

Music in Manitou
By Visiting Instructor Ever Reyes

The smell of coffee fills the café. Dishes clink as “Casey Jones” by the Grateful Dead plays over the café speakers. The class, Music in Manitou, gathers around three combined coffee tables. Warm cappuccinos and lattes in hand, the students discuss the readings from the night before. We talk about ethnomusicology and research methods, and converse on the connections between music, society, political economy, and history. As I look around the table, I smile as all the students are engaged, asking pertinent questions and contributing their points of view over the loud whirling of the espresso machine.

Music in Manitou is an immersive class where students work within the Manitou Springs community, engaging with concepts and theory from the fields of ethnomusicology and sociology. Through class field trips to Manitou (supported by the Music Department, the Community-Engaged Curriculum Grant, and the Center for Global Education and Field Study), students create a podcast that explores the musical lives and stories of local artists and musicians—recording the sounds of the city, interviewing residents and tourists, and participating in musical events to explore the relationship between music, art, and larger social structures. In celebration of the students’ achievements, their podcasts were shared with the Manitou community over food, music, and a community jam session at the Manitou Arts Center.

students working together at Manitou Arts Center

students in Music in Manitou class pose in scenic Manitou

Homecoming Music Ensembles Showcase
The Music Department celebrated Homecoming Weekend with performances by Tiger Jazz, Gamelan Tunjung Sari, CC Bluegrass, and the Chamber Chorus.