Jazz Festival

The Pavilion at Denver's City Park last weekend

Last weekend’s concert of City Park Jazz Festival ended the 2016 season of ten free to-the-public Sunday night concerts. I was pleased to have attended all ten performances. The weather has run from hot to chilly, from so dry as to parch one’s lips to dripping rain ( although we never did get an all-out rainfall this year as I recall it.)

The variety of bands met the usual high standard and this music was several times supplemented by short concerts from local high school jazz groups before the scheduled concert began.

Beautiful cloud formations add to the park's atmosphere.

I have again been reminded that music has permeated my family life. Dad was a church musician and played jazz standards with great style. He had played in a band that performed at a local hotel almost every Saturday night. On their off nights they would drive to other towns in Kansas to perform. Of course he would be at church early the next morning to play for Sunday school or a service. I grew up knowing hymns, anthems, service music, and jazz. Although I gave up my own work in music some years ago, I have replaced that with listening to lots of live music—mostly jazz—here in Denver. What a life in retirement! And sometimes I still hear a choral concert or symphony orchestra.

Long live music, and may I never lose my hearing!

Denver, 2016

One of my favorite mountains and skyviews.
Photo by Phillip Hoyle

Years ago I lived in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I felt elated there soaking up the contrasting cultures that lived together and influenced one another visually and culturally. I wanted to be influenced by new things in those days. Still do. 

At first my family and I lived in the North East Heights in a beautiful townhouse that presented a beautiful view of Sandia Peak, that mountain that reaches over four thousand feet above the river bottom and displays huge cliffs of brown granite. I loved sitting at the dining room table sipping a cup of coffee looking at that mountain. Sometimes the very top was covered with a thick icing of menacing storm clouds while the rest of the sky was blue and full of sunshine. 

After some months our children left home for their own adventures while my wife and I continued exploring our new home. Eventually we moved downtown into a comfortable apartment complex. I lost sight of the mountain due to our lower elevation and buildings, but I still had a pile of brown granite, a massive one called the Federal Building. I was quite pleased to sit at the same table sipping my morning coffee as in the Heights but now looking at an impressive structure made by people. I found it pleasing although profoundly different than the large mountain I had seen before. 

This beauty stands on 13th Avenue between
Lincoln and Broadway, Denver.
Photo by Phillip Hoyle

Of course I could see that other peak on my way to work. Other mountains as well.

In Denver I still get a wonderful view of Mount Evans as well as other mountains when I walk to the bus stop. Downtown there are fewer mountain views but many tall buildings. One my favorites is the one picture above that gives me not only a huge structure, but also views of the sky behind me. Many photographers have been fascinated by clouds reflected in windows. It's not the same as watching clouds in conjunction with a favorite mountain, but has its own wonders to reveal.

Denver, 2015