Well, the Stock Show is over, so that ushers in another Colorado tradition. You can finally take your Christmas decorations down. Try explaining that whole scenario to the people you know back east that take theirs down the day after Christmas. “No, we keep ours up around here until after the Stock Show is over at the end of January. Stock Show. It’s where they show off livestock. Cows and pigs and stuff. I don’t know, I guess we keep them up so the bulls stay happy and don’t tear the whole arena to pieces.”
But, that doesn’t mean that you are out of the woods yet with this holiday gift buying barrage that happens every year. You still have Valentine’s Day to look forward to. Then you are free and clear to pay off your credit card bills for a few months. Oh, wait. There’s Mother’s Day and Father’s Day still coming. Never mind, Christmas shopping will start on the 5th of July again. I guess it’s become an endless cycle.
Speaking of Valentine’s Day, you might want to plan ahead a little bit for this one. In case you haven’t looked at the calendar, Feb. 14 falls on a Monday this year, so you should probably think about doing something romantic on the weekend before. Nothing says “I love you” like finding out the hard way that the restaurant you were planning on going to is closed on Mondays.
Fear not, for I have a great suggestion this year that coincidentally is timed perfectly to accommodate the occasion in style.
How about going to an afternoon symphony concert, followed by a romantic dinner on Sunday, Feb. 13? Ah-hah! Now that’s the ticket!
Well, at least I thought that was going to be a great suggestion…But, thank you COVID once again. The Jefferson Symphony Orchestra’s 2022 Winter Concert that was scheduled for that date has been canceled by a vote from the Board of Directors out of an abundance of caution due the rise of the omicron variant of COVID. So, scratch that one off the list of options.
Ok, so let’s move on to Option #2.
How about a concert with an electric string quartet called Spinphony? That’s right, an electric string quartet. Here in Golden. At the Buffalo Rose. On Sunday, Feb. 13.
What the heck is Spinphony? They are an instrumental crossover string group who break down barriers between classical, rock and pop music. Mixing catchy melodies into unique arrangements such as “Bach in Black” and “Don’t Stop Beethoven,” they are more like a rock band than a classic string quartet with added choreography and beats. The group has over 50k Facebook followers and have released five studio albums. Whether you’re a fan of ACDC, Vivaldi or Bruno Mars, Spinphony plays music that everyone can relate to. They have performed shows worldwide and collaborated with 2 Cellos, Evanescense, Il Volo, Josh Groban and Michael Bublé, to name a few.
The doors open at 6 p.m. and the show starts at 7 p.m. Tickets run $25 and are available on the Buffalo Rose website at buffalorosegolden.com. The venue is located at 1119 Washington Ave. here in Golden.
If you want more info about Spinphony, check out spinphonystrings.com.
You also can have dinner there, as there is an extensive menu and a bar. That should set you up nicely for a really cool Valentine’s Day celebration and get you home early enough so you can get to work on Monday. Don’t forget the candy, flowers and card. It’s kind of a package deal, you know. And this year, you can’t blame me if you forget. But, I guess you could always blame COVID.
John Akal is a well-known jazz artist/drummer and leader of the 20-piece Ultraphonic Jazz Orchestra. He also is president of John Akal Imaging, professional commercial photography and multi-media production. He can be reached at jaimaging@aol.com