The Playground Ensemble celebrates 20 years
20 hours of new music across 4 venues
Photo courtesy of Still Productions
In celebration of their 20th season, The Playground Ensemble is hosting an ambitious 20-hour MARATHON of new music, structured to highlight all aspects of their musical ensemble and non-profit organization. The event takes place on Saturday, March 21, 2026, 7:00 a.m. – 3:00 a.m. and is broken into four-hour blocks, each at a different Denver venue. The public is invited to engage through a variety of free events, including concerts, community music-making, sessions for music educators, healing arts events, and much more. The focal event, “Playground at 20!” is a ticketed affair with a reception and a series of performances by the ensemble. Visit www.playgroundensemble.org for full session descriptions and a ticket link.
Morning Block, 7 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Metropolitan State University of Denver’s Kalamath Building
800 Kalamath St, Denver, CO 80204
Free to attend.
7:00 a.m. – Gong bath and yoga/meditation.
8:00 a.m. – Sound Bites Breakfast: Connect with composers, current and aspiring music educators, and people who run youth music organizations over coffee and cereal.
9:00 a.m. – Facilitated composition workshops covering a range of topics, including sound-painting, graphic notation, structured improvisation, and digital audio workstations.
10:30 AM – Culminating performance of each group’s composition.
Afternoon Block, 1:00-4:00 p.m.
Stanley Marketplace
2501 N. Dallas St. Aurora, Colorado 80010
Free to attend.
1:00-2:00
p.m. – Family/Community Music-Making. Families are invited to create their own instruments and compositions.
2:00 p.m. Sing with Us! – Meet in the Stanley Commons for a community singing of Pauline Oliveros’ “Tuning Meditation.”
2:30 p.m. – String Quartet Masterworks Concert. An eclectic sample of works by Latino, Indigenous, and women composers.
Photo courtesy of Matt Simonson
Evening Block, 4:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
MCA Denver at the Holiday Theater
2644 W 32nd Ave, Denver, CO 80211
Tickets $20 / Students $10
This series of concerts is the heart of MARATHON, which includes a trumpet and electronics chamber concert and an art song chamber concert.
At 8 p.m., the “Playground at 20” concert starts, featuring the first work they ever played, a new commission by Carlos Sanchez-Gutierrez for bass flute and ‘ghost’ string quartet, and a new work by Playground Director Conrad Kehn for the entire ensemble.
The evening will also feature the Colorado premiere of Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate’s “Ithánali” about a Chickasaw woman astronaut who is designated to be the first human to set foot on Mars as well as “I’m Waiting for Your Crip Cadence”, a collaborative composition by Nathan Hall and performance artist MG Bernard that creates an auditory and visual experience of what it is like to exist in a chronically sick body/mind.
Late Night Block, 10:00 p.m. – 3:00 a.m.
GLOB
3551 Brighton Blvd, Denver, CO 80216
Suggested donation.
10:00 p.m. – DJ i.lind late night set.
11:00 p.m. – The Music of the Shining.
12:00 a.m. – A ritual soundscaping performance led by Silen Wellington.
1:00 a.m. – Late-night spontaneous electronics.
2:00 a.m. – Improvised gong drones and meditation, ending the night how we started.
The MARATHON program is supported by Denver Arts & Venues through the DENVER CREATES Fund.
The Playground Ensemble is a group of professional musicians, composers, educators and fans dedicated to presenting chamber music as a living art form. Their goal is to provide stimulating performances, expand common perceptions of both contemporary music and the chamber ensemble, and nurture a community around this music that they love. As a 501(c)3 nonprofit, they cultivate a thriving local composition community through a robust commissioning program and extensive education/outreach programs. For more information, photos, and a complete list of concerts and events, please visit the Playground Ensemble website at www.playgroundensemble.org
