Classical music
Guitar heroes
Today. Classical guitar. Matteo Mela and Lorenzo Micheli met in 2000 and quickly realized that they shared similar musical sensibilities. The two classical guitarists formed SoloDuo, a twosome that has been featured everywhere from Carnegie Hall to Seoul’s Sejong Chamber Hall. The pair will present a concert at 7:30 tonight in the King Center on the Auraria Campus. The event marks the opening of Metropolitan State College of Denver’s third-annual guitar celebration, which includes free master classes and workshops on Saturday. $15, $10 seniors and students. 303-556-2296 or . Kyle MacMillan
Solo on strings
Wednesday. Classical guitar. In addition to serving as co-chairman of the guitar department at the Manhattan School of Music, David Leisner is an internationally touring performer and recording artist. The noted guitarist will present a solo recital at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday in Hamilton Recital Hall in the University of Denver’s Newman Center for the Performing Arts, 2344 E. Iliff Ave. The program’s highlight will be David del Tredici’s “Facts of Life,” a 35-minute work for solo guitar that premiered in New York City in April. $18, $16 seniors and free for students and DU faculty and staff. 303-871-6412 or . Kyle MacMillan
Big event
Sounds like heaven
Today-Sunday. Audiophile paradise. Billed as “the largest consumer audio and home-entertainment show in the nation,” the seventh annual Rocky Mountain Audio Fest is an overwhelming blast of aural stimulation, featuring more than 400 vendors from around the globe. Nearly 200 separate listening rooms will be available for audiophiles to wander (folks are encouraged to bring their own CDs and records to test on the systems) while more than a dozen seminars will explore everything from building the home stereo of your dreams to finding perfect headphones. Don’t be intimidated: Basic technology will be represented as much as the absurd, high-end systems. Denver Marriott Tech Center, 4900 S. Syracuse St. $10-$25. Students and seniors get in for half price. 12p.m.-6 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday. 303-779-1100 or . John Wenzel
Visual arts
Southwest showcase
Through the weekend.Regionally inspired. An exhibition opening this weekend at the Museo de las Americas, 861 Santa Fe Drive, brings together weaver Eppie Archuleta, potter Lawrence Namoki, carver Vernon Nieto and eight other artists whose traditional works are marked by deep ties to the history and geography of the Southwest. The show, titled “From the Earth,” continues through Jan. 10. $4, $3 students and seniors and free for members and children younger than 13. 303-571-4401 or . Kyle MacMillan
Theater
Are they serious?
Tuesday. Comic debate. This is the season for political debate. Some of the most profound meditations of our time take place at the high-minded Buntport Theater, which stages “The Great Debate” on the third Tuesday of every month. With an election looming that could change the course of our nation, what better time for this month’s battle to the verbose death, “Bacon … Or Kevin Bacon?” Expert teams will pursue victory with venomously loquacious fervor. Debaters will include frequent Comedy Works headliner Adam Cayton- Holland, local actors Jake Walker and Jim Hunt, and members of the Buntport ensemble. No one gets out smelling pretty. Bacon will be served . . . or it had better be. 8 p.m. $5-$7. 717 Lipan St. 720-946-1388 or . John Moore
Family fun
Galloping toward Halloween
Saturday. Seasonal celebration. The unusual “Halloween With Horses,” an equestrian seasonal celebration, turns the Colorado Horse Park into a Halloween wonderland. See horses of all shapes and sizes dressed up in silly costumes, from miniature dinosaurs to lumbering pirate ships. Guests are encouraged to dress up, too, and explore the farm’s other fall delights: a pumpkin patch, hay rides, Jack Russell terrier races and, for the brave, the “Stable of Terror.” Horse and pony rides, naturally, will be available, as well. Scare up a can of food to donate, and get $1 off the admission price. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. The Colorado Horse Park, 7375 Bayou Gulch Road, Parker; 303-841-5550, Ext. 110. Admission is $14 per person; children ages 2 and younger are free. Visit halloweenwith for more details. Kathleen St. John
Brass for kids
Saturday. Interactive concert. Little ones can toot their own horns at “Tiny Tots Love Music,” presented by the Denver Brass. The concert’s theme is “Rhythm and Beat”; kids can learn about music and the brass section through songs, dancing and interactive games. Grown-ups and older siblings are welcome to join in, too. If the brass magic takes, Oct. 23 brings the Denver Brass’ next concert, “Monster Brass.” The Halloween show has family matinee and evening performances. Tiny Tots: 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Wellshire Presbyterian Church, 2999 S. Colorado Blvd. Admission is $8 for adults, $5 for children. Monster Brass: 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Oct. 23, Newman Center for the Performing Arts, 2344 E. Iliff Ave. Matinee tickets are $30.75 for adults, $16.70 for kids age 12 and younger; evening show tickets are $34.75-$54.75 for adults, with student and senior discounts. For more information and to buy tickets, call 303-832-HORN or visit . Kathleen St. John
Masquerading on four legs
Saturday. Halloween tails. Pets get their own Halloween party at the Elitch Gardens Pet Parade. Best of all, proceeds from the entry fees benefit their animal brethren at the Denver Dumb Friends League. All kinds of pets are invited; get creative with costuming and win a prize in the costume contest. The prizes are pretty sweet, too (for humans): A free night’s stay in Black Hawk, tickets to the Children’s Museum of Denver and more. Check-in begins at noon; parade starts at 1 p.m. Elitch Gardens, 2000 Elitch Circle; 303-595-4FUN. Registration is $20 for one pet, $25 for two or more pets. Registration doesn’t include optional admission to the park for people. Buy tickets separately to enjoy the Gardens after the parade. Visit for more information. Kathleen St. John
Critters of the Old West
Saturday. Learning about animals. Celebrate National Wildlife Refuge Week at “Refuge Roundup: Journey to the Old West” at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal refuge. Learn about the old days through stories and demonstrations by Annie Oakley and Buffalo Bill Cody impersonators, and see mounted cavalry drills and dancing horses. Take a tour of the refuge’s bison herd, and get up close with birds of prey from HawkQuest and the Colorado Hawking Club. When the appetite starts acting up, a chuckwagon will be on hand with victuals 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday. Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge, East 56th Avenue and Havana Street. Admission is free. Learn more at . Kathleen St. John
Abstract art by Sam Scott on display at Havu
Sam Scott has lived in Santa Fe since 1969, and his place among that cultural center’s most accomplished artists was made clear in 1997-98 when the Museum of Fine Arts honored him with a 30-year retrospective.
The 70-year-old painter counts Clyfford Still, Philip Guston and Grace Hartigan among his teachers, and their influences are evident in his pieces. But more than in the work of any of those artists, his abstractions are tied to the rhythms and patterns of the landscape.
Unlike many paintings by Georgia O’Keeffe, in which it is possible to discern certain landmarks, Scott’s works are not tethered to any specific place. Instead, they come off as vibrant imaginings, with bright, non-objective colors that often diverge from the earthy tones typically associated with the Southwest, and animated brushwork and textured surfaces.
Twenty-eight of Scott’s recent oil paintings and watercolors are on view through Oct. 30 at the William Havu Gallery, 1040 Cherokee St.
Free. 303-893-2360 or . Kyle MacMillan
Music by the National is everywhere but on the radio
With indie rock’s rise to mainstream consciousness, it’s no surprise that one of the year’s most talked-about records comes from a literate, if moody, group of musicians out of Brooklyn.
When the National’s latest album, “High Violet,” landed in May, there was Springsteen-style buzz surrounding the release. Most fans had discovered the band via 2007’s “Boxer,” and many of them then went back to 2005’s brilliant “Alligator” for more. “High Violet” carries forward the band’s grand vision, which is as dark as it is meditative.
The band plays its biggest Denver show to date on Monday at the Fillmore Auditorium, and we spoke with bassist Scott Devendorf about working with expectations and the benefits of perspective.
Q: How are the new songs sounding live?A: It’s been great. People seem really into them. It’s funny, when you write songs, seeing which ones become live favorites. “Vanderlyle” and “England” and “Conversation 16” — we didn’t expect them to be big live songs, but they’re raucous songs.
Q: How has the process of this album experience varied from “Alligator” and “Boxer”?A: There was a little more expectation. But in the way we worked, it didn’t change that much. At one point we were trying to write some more upbeat pop songs as an experiment, but obviously the record didn’t turn out that way. Matt was challenging himself to sing in a different range, not so low-low-low, and that worked out. And that worked out in that we still sound like we do. It was an interesting experiment.
Q:Tell me about “Racing Dreams,” the documentary you guys contributed music to.A: It’s about kart racing, pre-NASCAR kart racing. It follows five kids and their families around, and it’s their experience training in kart, which leads to becoming a NASCAR driver. They drive these cars at 80 miles per hour, so it’s quite dangerous and intense. But the story’s great, and a friend of ours, Marshall Curry, is the director and cinematographer.
Q: Would you rather license your music to a small-budget documentary than a BMW commercial?A: We’re open to a lot of that so long as it’s not destructive. We’re not opposed to being in commercials or television shows as long as we don’t have an issue with what they stand for, so we wouldn’t do R.J. Reynolds or Cialis commercials.
Q: So you all have had your music out there?
A: Sure, “Fake Empire” was in an HBO show. We did a Google commercial. And “One Tree Hill,” we’ve had lots of stuff on there. It’s not the world’s greatest show, but people watch it, and for us, it’s nice to get paid a little money to do something and see how it enters culture in ways that you wouldn’t expect. Our music isn’t all that radio-friendly, and it’s interesting to see how it’s used. I’m always amused when it ends up in places that are slightly bizarre.
Q: Bands selling their music has definitely become more prevalent and acceptable over the last 10 years.A:Bands almost have to do it a little bit. If you’re not touring, a small band can do a couple commercials and get a little money and record a record. No one buys music anymore, it seems. It’s less and less so. Everything is streaming or stolen. True fans buy records, but we’re the minority. I was talking with my 17-year-old cousin recently and she had a burned copy of “Dark Was the Night,” the charity CD we helped with. I asked her, “Is that a burned copy of a charity CD?” It was. It was funny.
Ricardo Baca: 303-954-1394 or rbaca@denverpost.com;
THE NATIONAL.
Moody, literate rock. Fillmore Auditorium, 1510 Clarkson St. Monday 8 p.m. $35.25
