“Breaking down barriers between the orchestra and its audience through children’s programs and school engagements,” Hughes hopes to “foster this generation’s love for classical music, sharing the transformative power of music’s emotional resonance.”
Whether he is conducting his version of the Three B’s, Beethoven, Brahms, & Brittany, Hughes substitutes contemporary American composer Brittany Green for Bach, or Epic Love: From Shakespeare to Superheroes, which includes Verdi’s La Traviata alongside Rogers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma, Hughes is ever innovating to bring his beloved symphonic music to the masses.
Watching a flower bloom on Sesame Street to the strains of Vivaldi is how Devin Patrick Hughes recalls his first musical epiphany, at age three. His affinity for the symphonic model blossomed in college where he organized his first orchestra while studying music and pre-med. He would go on to co-found the Boulder Symphony—one among a cadre of young conductors carrying their craft forward in new, innovative ways. He spoke with us about the resonance of music, and its power to uplift a community and transform lives.
Conductor Devin Patrick Hughes and musicians from the Boulder Symphony perform Conni Ellisor’s Tres Danzas de Video on 9News’s Colorado & Company. Hughes discusses the upcoming Fidget Concert for a neurodiverse audience including those with developmental and intellectual disabilities, along with the upcoming West Side Story performance, Boulder Symphony Music Academy, and the upcoming July 4 Spectacular.
Experience the magic of the movies under the stars! Join Conductor Devin Patrick Hughes and the Symphony of the Rockies this Saturday at Centennial Center Park Amphitheater for Cinematic Symphony — a free, family-friendly outdoor concert celebrating iconic film scores, with an exclusive VIP pre-concert event for an elevated evening.
Don’t miss the chance to experience the online premiere of Peter Drew’s Symphony No. 1, Reminiscence, on July 25, 2025. Performed by the Boulder Symphony and produced in a live concert by Parma Recordings, this symphony blends classical influences with Drew’s personal musical journey, offering a rich, cinematic experience that captures emotional depth and sonic beauty. Tune in to hear the symphony’s striking fusion of rhythmic folk themes, jazz, Americana, and the timeless sounds of Bach.
Summer Concert Series with Boulder Symphony: 6 p.m., Sunrise Amphitheater, 1198 Flagstaff Drive, Boulder. Join Yoga Pearl and the Boulder Symphony at Sunrise Amphitheater for a night of yoga and music. $50-$70, clients.mindbodyonline.com.
“The Crescendo Project is where our mission truly comes alive—it’s where we hand the baton to the next generation,” added Devin Patrick Hughes, Conductor and Artistic Director. “This funding means more than instruments and lessons; it means doors opening, voices being heard, and young people discovering the power of music to transform their lives so they can transform their communities.”
The orchestra’s growth mirrors the ambition of the piece they started with. Beethoven’s Ninth is more than an hour long. For a musician, it demands stamina, precision and emotional range from everyone involved. Its final movement breaks the mold of a traditional symphony, bringing in soloists and a full chorus to sing the famous “Ode to Joy,” a roaring declaration so full of collective hope that’s shown up everywhere from graduation ceremonies to action movies.
Hughes hails from Colorado, where he directs both the Boulder Symphony Orchestra and Symphony of the Rockies. In both roles, he said, he carries the hope of making classical music accessible for audiences.
That mission has led to partnerships with local organizations for sensory-friendly concerts. His orchestras also play music that those with dementia connect with, typically music from the past.
Such concerts, he said, have a healing effect on those individuals.
Hughes will be directing the ASO's last concert of the 2024-25 season, "Rach the House," Saturday evening at the Paramount Theatre.
The program consists of "Symphony No. 8" by Ludwig Van Beethoven, "Conga Del Fuego Nueva," by Arturo Marquez and "Piano Concerto No. 3 in D Minor" by Sergei Rachmaninoff.
“Breaking down barriers between the orchestra and its audience through children’s programs and school engagements,” Hughes hopes to “foster this generation’s love for classical music, sharing the transformative power of music’s emotional resonance.”
Whether he is conducting his version of the Three B’s, Beethoven, Brahms, & Brittany, Hughes substitutes contemporary American composer Brittany Green for Bach, or Epic Love: From Shakespeare to Superheroes, which includes Verdi’s La Traviata alongside Rogers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma, Hughes is ever innovating to bring his beloved symphonic music to the masses.
Devin Patrick Hughes and and Symphony of the Rockies (SOR) musicians Kina Ono, Laura Johnson, Heidi Snyder, & Quentan Milliner join host Claudia Garofalo and friends on Colorado & Company on 9News.
They discuss their mission: to make world class symphonic music approachable for all, SOR’s upcoming season and concert on October 26 at Newman Center for the Performing Arts.
The Boulder Symphony opens a new season this weekend with what conductor Devin Patrick Hughes calls “a very America-centric concert.” Performances at the Gordon Gamm Theater of the Dairy Arts Center will be at 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday (full program and details below).
“Florence Price is the quintessential American composer,” Hughes wrote in an email. “Her music takes from the melting pot of our culture, from spirituals and gospel, and blends them with the great European masters to create a unique American voice.”
I love making the orchestra relatable to anyone I meet. I discovered the symphony at the age of 3, and at all the most difficult times in my life, it has given me connection to a greater purpose, a unified world. Music tells us that through anything we face, we are not alone. This is why my life’s work has been centered around sharing this with as many as possible.
Through the work with my amazing orchestras, Boulder Symphony & Music Academy, and Arapahoe Philharmonic: Symphony of the Rockies, I have been fortunate to reach thousands of kids per season with our Discovery and Curiosity concert, where the students get to participate in the plot, songs, dance, and characters in a way that no other orchestra provides. This lays a foundation for participating in culture and the arts for their entire lives.
THERE'S A NEW SYMPHONY IN TOWN And I'm excited to have Devin Patrick Hughes, Artistic Director and Conductor, and Bess Scully, Executive Director on to talk about the transformation of the Arapahoe Philharmonic into the Symphony of the Rockies.
I believe that the symphony orchestra is one of the most magical organisms on earth because it's where everybody comes together… maybe seventy people with different opinions and different ideas of how things should sound and we unite that, and I think that everybody should experience and deserves to experience, which is why half of our mission is focused on educating the next generation.
Devin Patrick Hughes
https://www.lanazione.it/firenze/cronaca/srdjan-vukasinovic-ne-le-quattro-stagioni-per-fisarmonica-3b4c236d?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR0WwLefdHq8lz88tac6lUzEywOMIyvo4pVyOKceSFMwA3MMK0-EYmMBRXQ_aem_AV6fdVzEQQQ983iYTWV-IkQGTxtoVS-UFTr_Vy-fYIIih-t6Q4wyZIAoXFHcR8NSA0bv9_euBFsDQa9FaVtDIMRE&live
South Metro Denver Chamber will present THE TANK 2024, presented by Colorado Gives Foundation, on
Tuesday, May 14 at Lone Tree Arts Center with Special Guest and Emcee, Devin Patrick Hughes, Conductor and Artistic Director of the Arapahoe Philharmonic.
This is a heartwarming and insightful opportunity to spotlight nonprofit Chamber members. Inspired by the popular TV show, THE TANK brings the business and nonprofit sectors of the community together by showcasing select nonprofits as they pitch to a panel of Sharks. A portion of proceeds will benefit all participating nonprofits.
We are thrilled to announce that Devin Patrick Hughes was one of three Americans invited to participate in the Erich Bergel Competition in Romania! Selected along with 40 other conductors around the world, Maestro Hughes will compete in Tîrgu Mureș as he conducts the Tîrgu Mureș State Philharmonic in partnership with Associazione Artes, and Kult Mind Association.
