2022-23 Season

Join us for our season finale, a multi-genre concert by composer/ violinist Edward W. Hardy. The program will include Chopin’s Nocturne in E Flat Major, Bach’s Chaconne, Ysaÿe’s Sonata No. 3, an array of pop music, and the Colorado premiere of Hardy’s BORN FREE with soprano Courtney Caston and a pianist. Born Free is a song cycle based on the poetry of Margaret Walker, commissioned by Wolf Trap Opera.

Edward W. Hardy is a critically acclaimed Black and Puerto Rican composer, music director, virtuoso violinist and violist and is one of the foremost exponents of solo violin repertoire for theatrical productions. At the age of 25, “Hardy (was) one of the youngest composers to ever be accepted into the Exploring the Metropolis Con Edison Composer Residency and one of the most prominent composer / violinists in New York City” (BroadwayWorld).

Edward has received numerous awards, most recently winning 1st Prize in the 2022 University of Northern Colorado Concerto Competition and 2nd Prize in the 2022 Angie Southard Performance Competition. Edward is a proud member of Local 802 Musicians Union, Dramatist Guild of America, ASCAP and is affiliated with the Sphinx Organization, Exploring the Metropolis, and the Gateways Music Festival. He is also the founder and artistic director of the Omnipresent Music Festival – BIPOC Musicians Festival, the digital marketing director and artistic advisor of Beethoven in the Rockies, and the senior director of operations at the Northern Colorado Center for Arts Entrepreneurship. Edward is a doctoral candidate / graduate instructor in violin performance at the University of Northern Colorado under the mentorship of Dr. Jubal Fulks. Read more about Edward W. Hardy.

A portion of the proceeds from this concert will benefit El Sistema Colorado. Their mission is to harness the joy of music and ignite the potential in our future leaders through an immersive youth music education program that transcends socioeconomic barriers.