14 Ocak 2011 Cuma

Beaver Creek's Marvelous Ice Music

Ice music in Beaver Creek's Crystal Grotto is a wondrous thing


A large, two-lobed igloo with stadium seating at the top of Beaver Creek's Centennial Express lift serves as the recital hall for a group of musicians who play on instruments made of ice. It is all the brainchild of Tim Linhart, long-time ice sculptor. He arrived in the Vail Valley in 1989 from Taos, New Mexico, began carving ice and has been doing so ever since. This winter, he has taken ice sculpture to the next level by designing a structure and creating instruments mostly of ice on which what he calls "ice music" can be played.


Over the years, he has sculpted eight playable violins, seven guitars, 15 cellos, a xylophone, an assortment of flutes, violas and his spin on a pipe organ that he calls a Rolandophone. The ice instruments change colors and cast different hues on the ice walls as the musicians play a mixture of pop, sing-along and country.


To create string instruments, Linhart packs a mixture of snow and water onto plastic instrument forms, then puts the top and bottom in a mold and crafts the sidewalls. He attaches the standard violin or guitar nack and regular strings. Percussion instruments are all ice. He and the musicians who play together are captivated by the clear, haunting sounds produced by ice instruments.



Crystal Grotto is the name for the cojoined igloos where ice music is performed this season. Remaining performances are at 1:00 and 3:00 p.m. on February 12, 13, 14, 20, 21, 27 and 28,  March 5, 6, 7, 12, 13, 14, 19, 20, 21, 26, 27 and 28, and April 3 and 4. Guests must have a lift ticket or foot pass for one roundtrip chairlift ride.Crystal Grotto tickets may be purchased in advance or (space available) on performance day. Lift tickets are sold at the Beaver Creek Ticket Office. Crystal Grotto tickets are $10 for the 45-minute performance (except the 3:00 Saturday show when children 12 and under are free). When you enter and are offered a foam cushion, take two. And prepare to be totally enchanted.

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