Colorado Music Festival Renews Music Director’s Contract

Conductor Peter Oundjian will continue the role through to 2029

Founded in 1976, the ​Colorado Music Festival (CMF)​ presents a summer season of concerts featuring guest artists from around the world alongside more than 100 musicians, who comprise the CMF Orchestra. 

Recently, the CMF announced the five-year contract renewal of its Music Director Peter Oundjian, whose tenure began in 2019 and will now run through the 2029 summer season. 

During Oundjian’s tenure, the CMF has drawn audiences of more than 20,000 each season. In 2020, Oundjian helped CMF develop its virtual festival involving many of the artists who had planned to perform live at the festival that summer if not for the pandemic lockdowns. 

Among the artists that appeared at CMF for the first time under Oundjian’s direction included pianists Timo Andres, Jeremy Denk, Simone Dinnerstein, Stewart Goodyear, Olga Kern, Jan Lisiecki, and Conrad Tao; violinists Joshua Bell, Randall Goosby, and VC Artist Tessa Lark; cellist Alisa Weilerstein; clarinetist Anthony McGill; saxophonists Steven Banks and Timothy McAllister; and percussionist Ji Su Jung.  

Oundjian also established CMF’s Robert Mann Chamber Music Series, which presents concerts each summer performed by the Festival Orchestra musicians and by guest ensembles like the Attacca Quartet, Brentano String Quartet, Brooklyn Rider, Danish String Quartet, Emerson String Quartet, JACK Quartet, and Takács String Quartet. 

Additionally, he is involved in the Festival Fellows Program, bringing aspiring professional musicians to CMF and providing them with tailored mentoring, plus has overseen the programming of newly commissioned works by Timo Andres, Gabriela Lena Frank, Hannah Lash, Joel Thompson, Joan Tower, Wang Jie, and more.

Previously, Oundjian held a 14-year tenure as Music Director of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, which concluded in 2018. He has been a visiting professor at Yale University’s School of Music since 1981.

“It has been rewarding to see this Festival entering its next chapter under Peter’s leadership,” said CMF’s Executive Director Elizabeth McGuire in the press release. “His enthusiasm for making music is infectious, and his dedication to exploring and commissioning new music has made a huge impact on the Festival and the industry.”

“Over the past five years, I have fallen in love with Colorado and it has been a real inspiration to work with the wonderful team here at CMF,” Oundjian added. “Everyone is ready and willing to try new things and find ways to delight our audiences not only with the great masterpieces of the repertoire, but also with new commissions and recently composed music that is accessible and compelling, and keeps them coming back for more.  There are more commissions and some surprises in the years to come, so stay tuned!”

The full calendar for the 2024 CMF can be found here.