Sarah Chang at the Ent Center for the Arts

Last night, Paige and I saw violinist Sarah Chang in concert at the new Ent Center for the Arts, the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs' 92,000 square foot facility hub for the Department of Visual and Performing Arts. The building opened with its first gala performance just last month on February 3. The center includes four theaters, a recording studio and audio lab, an art gallery, and space for rehearsals, lessons, and offices. It's a gorgeous structure. The long, rippling front of the building has floor to ceiling windows that offer beautiful views of the Front Range with Pikes Peak front and center. Colorado Springs has a vibrant musical tradition, and the new center enriches both the university and the community.

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UCCS, which was established in 1965, is growing rapidly. Enrollment has spiked by over 60% in the past decade, and the student population is currently about 12,400. There's some speculation that the student population will double in the next ten years. The school was a commuter campus until 1997, but has since been adding student housing. In the fall of 2014, The Lodges of Colorado Springs, an attractive student housing complex with mountain views, a pool, and a sauna, opened, and more housing is being built.

It's good to see Colorado encouraging the arts. The University of Northern Colorado, with its gem of a music school, has students rehearse in a scruffy, off-campus hall and perform at the admittedly attractive but off-campus Union Colony Civic Center. UNC will finally get its own on-campus performance hall, along with a multi-purpose auditorium, an art gallery, and other functionality, when the new Campus Commons opens later this year. The last beam of the new structure was placed in December, 2017, and the building should open within the next few months.

Last night's performance was spectacular. Sarah Chang was accompanied by a small ensemble consisting of two violinists, a violist, a cellist, and a bassist. She exhibited great exuberance and joy, both in her play and in the way she related to the audience. She was an extraordinary child prodigy who started studying at Juilliard's Pre-College Division at the tender age of six, and debuted with the New York Philharmonic at all of eight years old. Her parents apparently tried to keep her childhood as normal as possible. They told her she didn't need to go to Juilliard if it "wasn't fun" for her (she says it was tremendous fun) and tried to ensure she didn't feel pressured. She seems bright and bubbly and has had influence outside of music. She was appointed to President Obama's Commission on Russian Relations and was also a State Department Special Cultural Envoy. She seems to have a rich and happy life.

Sarah and her ensemble played three pieces in the intimate setting of the Shockley-Zalabak Theater, which is an ideal setting for a chamber orchestra. The first piece, by the Italian composer Tomaso Antonio Vitali, was Chaconne in G minor. Very pretty! The second was a series of excerpts from Antonio Vivaldi's The Four Seasons. Spectacular! They concluded with The Four Season of Buenos Aires by the 20th century Argentinian composer, Astor Piazzolla. Fun and interesting, especially in the use of the bass as a percussion instrument.

It was a fun evening, and I look forward to many more performances at The Ent Center. I hope its opening heralds the further development of UCCS's music program.