Even though dynamic skies were threatening showers, it was a glowing, brilliant evening at Memorial Park in Colorado Springs as we eagerly anticipated the unknown. As summer wound down and the back-to-school rush set in, MindTravel brought its Live-to-Headphones Silent Piano Concert to Colorado, with stops in Boulder, Colorado Springs and Denver, and we happened to catch the event in Colorado Springs.
Creator and composer Murray Hidary mentioned that he often plays these concerts on a beach, which would be lovely, but Colorado’s parks have their own special kind of magic, relaxing and walking barefoot in the grass with the mountains as a backdrop.
Hidary played improvised piano live and outdoors, and the audience heard each note in real time through wireless headphones in a truly unique concert-going experience. Attendees could sit, lie down, walk and move to the music while Hidary got fully in the zone. He describes the experience as part meditation, part deep relaxation and part art, meant to open the heart to healing and transformation.
Hidary has brought MindTravel to more than 100 cities, including outdoor settings from the deserts of the Middle East to the first piano concert performed on the continent of Antarctica. He is also an entrepreneur and tech pioneer who studied music and composition at New York University and started his first company at 22, according to MindTravel. In the early days of the internet he co-founded and built companies including EarthWeb, Dice Inc., Vista Research and eBillity. Today he is focused on the human experience, and through the MindTravel Foundation he helps people connect with themselves and one another.
MindTravel’s Colorado run included Chautauqua Park in Boulder on Aug. 25, Memorial Park in Colorado Springs on Aug. 26, and City Park’s East Meadow in Denver on Aug. 27, each from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Organizers asked attendees to arrive 20 to 30 minutes early for headphone check-in. The concerts ran rain or shine, and organizers said light rain would not stop the show, which we found to be true. And even when the skies did open up with some gentle showers, event organizers were well prepared with dozens of umbrellas which they brought around.
Honestly, I wouldn’t mind if every concert was like this. The ability to have quiet private conversations, to control your own volume, to get up and walk around without interrupting the sound or experience took so many of the slightly annoying parts of concertgoing out of the equation, while creating a deeply immersive, meditative experience.
Beyond its outdoor concerts, MindTravel stages performances on beaches, in planetariums and theaters, and other unique venues, and it runs guided SilentWalks that take place virtually on the first Monday of each month, according to the company.
Tickets and upcoming dates are available at mindtravel.com/events.
