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The 19th annual Moab Music Festival is coming up and will be held September 1 - 12, 2011 with its annual celebration of chamber and classical music amid the stunning red rocks of Moab.

Here are some highlights, with descriptions provided by the fest:

WEEK I: Labor Day Weekend (September 1-5):

"David Amram's America" captures the spirit of red rock country with pioneering Amram as this year's composer-in-residence, beginning on August 31st with a pre-screening of the documentary "David Amram, The First 80 Years," and the film about the Beats, "Pull My Daisy" (following screenings earlier in the month of the iconic films Amram scored, "Splendor in the Grass," "The Manchurian Candidate" and "The Young Savages."). On the morning of Thursday, September 1, spectacular red rock mesas and buttes impress as patrons jetboat 40 exhilarating minutes down the Colorado River for the coveted first Grotto concert. Here in the acoustically perfect "concert hall" grotto audiences will be greeted by the improbable sight of a grand piano in the wilderness sand for a program including Bach's glorious Suite for solo Cello in C major, a Mozart violin sonata, Rachmaninoff's soulful Vocalise and a Beethoven trio.

Friday, September 2 is the official opening night of the season at the charming Star Hall, with the program featuring Stravinsky's epic Rite of Spring for 2 pianos, and Dvorak's monumental Quartet for Piano and Strings in D major.

The Festival tent pitched on the banks of the Colorado River beckons the audience to a stunning setting familiar to western film buffs for two concerts at Red Cliffs Adventure Lodge. On Saturday, September 3 the tent resonates with the sounds of the American spirit, in a program featuring David Amram and his works. In a surrounding that farely echoes with the history of the region, listeners will hear a program which locates Amram's important place in the American musical pantheon, exploring his contributions to American politics, poetry, indigenous people, and his unique comments on America. The program includes Negro Spirituals (arr. Henry Burleigh), his Honor Song for Sitting Bull for cello and piano, his Three Songs for America , settings of the words of Martin Luther King, J.F. Kennedy, and R.F. Kennedy, and his evocative Native American Portraits for Violin, Piano and percussion, along with his Red River Valley Variations. Amram's music will be joined on the program by that of his colleagues; Copland (American Songs), William Bolcom/ Arnold Weinstein (Cabaret Songs) and the Jack Kerouack/Amram Pull My Daisy , performed by Amram himself.

Agile music lovers can start Sunday, Setember 4 with the first of two Music Walks when patrons are shuttled to a "secret location" where, after a short hike, they arrive in a beautiful spot suited to the intimacy of works for solo instruments. These popular walks are great fun for all who can amble a half-mile over the red rock. This program features the music of J.S. Bach, including his Suite for Cello in G Major, and a violin Partita and Sonata. Musical Walks are suitable for most people in general good health with a moderate level of fitness and agility.

Punch it up a notch on Sunday evening at 6 back at Red Cliffs Adventure Lodge, for the Punch Brothers featuring virtuoso mandolin player Chris Thile, Noam Pikelny, banjo, Gabe Witcher, fiddler, Paul Kowert, bassist, and guitarist Chris Eldridge. The Punch Brothers continue to mix performances of their latest CD, Antifogmatic with their latest work. Their inventive mash-up of bluegrass, rock, and classical is irresistible and they've have been wowing audiences across the globe, on their own and in collaboration with such luminaries as Steve Martin (yes, that one), T Bone Burnett and beyond.

Top off your long weekend on Monday, September 5, 2 pm with the annual Labor Day Rocky Mountain Power Family Picnic concert at Old City Park. Spread your blanket and take in the sounds of Festival favorites Paul Woodiel and Christopher Layer in Celtic traditional music, along with some surprises from David Amram and other Festival artists. Pianist Pedja Muzijevic makes his Festival debut performing virtuoso morceaux by Franz Liszt in honor of the composers' 200th birthday.

Week II: (September 6-11):

Far out on Byway 128 under the cottonwood trees along the expansive banks of the Colorado is the private Ranch at Cottonwood Bend, where, on Tuesday, September 6, at 6 pm, Festival regulars Woodiel and Layer, always a sellout, present Play With Your Food, one of their signature traditional performances. The intimate evening begins with a reception of heavenly hors d'oeuvres and delicious wine, and ends with fireworks and a reception, and the chance to mingle with the artists and other concertgoers (limited seating).

Wednesday, September 7, 5 pm, offers a much-loved event at the Festival, an intimate House Concert, a night of luminous chamber music at one of Moab's gracious homes. The benefit evening supports the Festival's education and community outreach programs and offers fine food, good wine and friendly company, accompanied by the Festival's world-class artists in Mozart's Sonata for violin and piano in C Major, K. 303 and Mendelssohn's Quintet for Strings in B-flat, Op. 87.

The next eagerly-anticipated, and usually sold-out, Grotto Concert is on Thursday, September 8. The Grotto Adventure again takes a limited number of patrons downriver by jetboat to the visually stunning and sonically perfect grotto where Festival Music Director and pianist Michael Barrett and violist and Festival Artistic Director Leslie Tomkins are joined by exceptional artists. Scarlatti's jewel-like sonatas are interspersed seamlessly with short works of Feldman and Cowell, and Faure's sumptuous Quartet for Piano and Strings in c minor will fill the red rock grotto.

On Friday, September 9, 6 pm watch the sun set over the Colorado River landscape at the Sorrel River Ranch. Audiences will hear Dvorak's Trio for violin, cello, and piano in F minor, the rarely-played and virtuosic Bruch Octet for strings and more.

Get a sneak peek at how the artists put things together before they step on stage on Saturday morning, September 10 with an open rehearsal at Star Hall. These events have become a Festival institution at which questions from the audience are welcome and lively interactions ensue between composers, performers and music lovers.

The Pavilion at Sorrel River Ranch resonates with Latin American jazz sounds on Saturday, September 10, 6pm. Headed up by former festival Artist-in-Residence and flutist extraordinaire Marco Granados, Latin All-Stars includes Columbian harp virtuoso Edmar Castaneda, Leo Granados, percussion, Mark Turner,saxophone, Adam Cruz, drums, Roberto Koch, bass, and Edward Simon, piano. The program will include Simon's recently composed Venezuelan Jazz Suite. Dancing optional of course!

For those who can't secure a ticket to the much-anticipated first Musical Walk, there's another chance and another "secret location" on Sunday, September 11. The shuttle departs at 9am. Paul Woodiel and Christopher Layer will be joined by other traditional musicians who are sure to add a spring to your step.

Monday, September 12 is the final Grotto Concert, and will kick off the annual Musical Raft Trip through Cataract Canyon. The last of these three glorious grotto concerts will again take audiences cruising down the river to the wilderness grotto, this time for an afternoon of the music of J.S. Bach. The serene beauty of the Grotto seems the ideal environment to bask in the sounds of the Baroque master. Following the concert and reception, some listeners go back to Moab, others continue on for the raft trip.

For more information about the Festival or to purchase tickets for the 19th Moab Music Festival, please visit http://www.moabmusicfest.org or telephone the Box Office at (435) 259-7003. You may also visit the Festival Office at 58 East 300 South, Moab, UT 84532.