Orchestras

CU Boulder Orchestras

Welcome to orchestras at the University of Colorado Boulder College of Music!

Our orchestras

The CU Boulder Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra and Chamber Orchestra perform a wide variety of symphonic repertoire. The past three years have included standard works by Berlioz, R. Strauss, Schumann, Tchaikovsky, Copland, Beethoven, Ravel, Bernstein, Barber, Brahms, Shostakovich, Stravinsky, Sibelius, Debussy, Prokofiev, Mozart and Haydn as well as world premieres by Carter Pann, Christopher Theofanidis and the U.S. premiere of a work by Finnish composer Juhani Nuorvala.

CU Boulder orchestras are committed to the regular and sustained performance of works by historically marginalized composers including women and people of color. Recent performances include works by Annika Socolofsky, Anna Clyne, Jessie Montgomery, George Walker, Derrick Skye, Joseph Bologne, Roshanne Etezady, Fanny Mendelssohn and Lili Boulanger. In the past two seasons, works by BIPOC composers were featured on each program including Clarice Assad, Amy Beach, Kevin Day, Florence Price, William Grant Still, Joseph Bologne, Ethyl Smyth, Gabriela Lena Frank, Carlos Simon, Emilie Mayer, Philip Herbert, Irene Britton Smith and Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. 

Our Symphony Orchestra has appeared with such artists as cellist Johannes Moser, pianist Jeremy Denk, jazz pianist and Academy Award-winning composer (and alumnus) Dave Grusin. Additionally, the orchestra has also recently appeared with pop artist Natalie Merchant and their  with the Indigo Girls was released in 2018. The 2023-24 season featured special collaborations with indigenous musicians from Pueblo, Colorado, and with 10-time Grammy-winning band Asleep at the Wheel. The orchestra also welcomed back the principal musicians of the Cleveland Orchestra for our biennial residency on the CU Boulder campus. Solo appearances with the orchestra are awarded to students as a result of the annual Honors Competition.

The Campus Orchestra is an ensemble comprised primarily of non-music majors which delivers one concert performance each semester. The ensemble performs a wide-ranging repertoire from Baroque through contemporary periods in both string and full-orchestra settings and rehearses on Wednesday evenings from 7-9 p.m. in rooms E160 and S134 in the Imig Music Building. There is no formal audition required for admission into this ensemble. 

Musicians of any major interested in participating should attend the first meeting of the ensemble, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 7 p.m. in room E160, Imig Music Building. More information will be presented at the first meeting.

Questions? Contact Jacob Kaminski, jacob.kaminski@colorado.edu.

2024-25

CU Boulder Philharmonia Orchestra
Sept. 22–Dress rehearsal, 7-10 p.m., Grusin Music Hall
Sept. 23–Concert, 7:30 p.m., Grusin Music Hall

CU Boulder Symphony Orchestra
Sept. 25–Dress rehearsal, 7-10 p.m., Macky Auditorium
Sept. 26–Concert, 7:30 p.m., Macky Auditorium

CU Boulder Chamber Orchestra
Oct. 23–Dress rehearsal, 7-10 p.m., Grusin Music Hall
Oct. 24–Concert, 7:30 p.m., Grusin Music Hall

CU Boulder Opera Orchestra
Oct. 22-27–Production week (evening rehearsals on Oct. 20, 22, 23 with performances on the weekend–Oct. 25, 25, 27)

CU Boulder Philharmonia Orchestra
Nov. 17–Dress rehearsal, 7-10 p.m., Grusin Music Hall
Nov. 18–Concert, 7:30 p.m., Grusin Music Hall

CU Boulder Symphony Orchestra
Nov. 20–Dress rehearsal, 7-10 p.m., Macky Auditorium
Nov. 21–Concert, 7:30 p.m., Macky Auditorium

CU Boulder Holiday Festival (both CU Boulder Philharmonia Orchestra + CU Boulder Symphony Orchestra musicians)
Dec. 5–Dress rehearsal, 7-10 p.m., Macky Auditorium
Dec. 6–Concert #1, 7:30 p.m., Macky Auditorium
Dec. 7–Concert #2, 1 p.m., Macky Auditorium
Dec. 7–Concert #3, 4 p.m., Macky Auditorium
Dec. 8–Concert #4, 4 p.m., Macky Auditorium

CU Boulder Symphony Orchestra
Jan. 31–Special performance at CMEA in Colorado Springs. Likely 4 p.m. performance and will require travel during the day.

CU Boulder Philharmonia Orchestra
Feb. 9–Dress rehearsal, 7-10 p.m., Grusin Music Hall
Feb. 10–Concert, 7:30 p.m., Grusin Music Hall

CU Boulder Symphony Orchestra
Feb. 12–Dress rehearsal, 7-10 p.m., Macky Auditorium
Feb. 13–Concert, 7:30 p.m., Macky Auditorium

CU Boulder Chamber Orchestra
March 12–Dress rehearsal, 7-10 p.m., Grusin Music Hall
March 13–Concert, 7:30 p.m., Grusin Music Hall

CU Boulder Opera Orchestra
March 9-16–Production week (evening rehearsals on March 10, 12, 13 with performances on the weekend–March 14, 15, 16)

CU Boulder Philharmonia Orchestra
April 23–Dress rehearsal, 7-10 p.m., Grusin Music Hall
April 24–Concert, 7:30 p.m., Grusin Music Hall

CU Boulder Symphony Orchestra
April 28–Dress rehearsal, 7-10 p.m., Macky Auditorium
April 29–Concert, 7:30 p.m., Macky Auditorium

Auditions

Auditions for the fall 2024 semester are open to all CU Boulder students. String auditions will be held on the first two days of classes, Monday, Aug. 26 and Tuesday, Aug. 27. String audition excerpts are posted in the “Audition materials” tab (along with the list of excerpts) and available for download. All string majors, regardless of degree program, are expected to audition through this process. 

Please note the following information regarding string audition materials:

All string musicians should be responsible for both of the following:

  1.  Excerpts below 
  2. A short solo work or etude you feel best demonstrates your ability.

Audition excerpts are available for download at the following links (along with the list of excerpts from each work):

The mission of the University of Colorado Boulder Orchestras commits its members to a shared belief that our collective work as musicians should be guided by an unwavering affirmation of diversity; a staunch desire to foster for all people, without exception, a sense that they belong; and the knowledge that social justice never exists if it does not exist for all people, not least people who have historically been and continue to be marginalized, frequently by violent means. We recognize and embrace the notion that the inherently collaborative nature of our art is important to the development of empathy and inclusion. However, throughout its long history, our art has not adequately included women and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color). CU Boulder Orchestras are committed to amplifying the voices of, and creating an encouraging environment for, musicians, composers and scholars of these historically marginalized groups and for every person who seeks to collaborate genuinely and to grow artistically.

Upcoming orchestra events

Song of Pueblo

On Oct. 26, 2023, the CU Boulder College of Music’s American Music Research Center, the CU Boulder Chamber Orchestra and El Pueblo Ensemble collaborated to present a livestreamed multimedia performance of “Song of Pueblo,” a sweeping oratorio that portrays the history of southern Colorado. 

Contacts

Director of Orchestral Studies
gary.lewis@colorado.edu
303-492-5510
, S333
 

Renee Gilliland
Associate Director of Orchestras
renee.gilliland@colorado.edu
303-492-9522
, C129

Mike Tetreault
Ensembles Percussion Instructor + Coordinator