Events & Festivals

Each September, the Moab Music Festival brings an array of the world’s finest musicians to Utah for a series of traditional, chamber and jazz concerts set against the most amazing backdrop – the red rocks of Moab.

Music ranges from contemporary and old chamber music to Latin jazz and traditional music from all corners of the globe.

History of the Moab Music Festival

The festival was founded in 1992 when to New York-based musicians, Michael Barrett and Leslie Tomkins, decided to create music against the magical red rocks of Moab. Tomkins admits that part of the inspiration for setting up the concert was to ensure that they returned to the quite spectacular area.

Now in its 27th year, the award-winning festival is renowned for its innovative programming and intimate concerts set in the most amazing locations.

For another alternative US Music Festval, try Burning Man in Nevada.

 Moab Concerts and Artists

This year’s season will start with a Westwater Musical raft trip featuring music from Venezuela and Argentina on 26 August, and will conclude with the final Grotto Concert on 9 September.

In total some 20 concerts will be performed in a range of venues around Moab, with the signature Grotto Concerts taking place in a pristine grotto 30 miles out of town down the Colorado River. You can also take a multi-day, musical raft along the Colorado, or go on one of the music hikes.

This year’s highlights include the premiere of composer-in-residence Clarice Assad, as well as new compositions by Jessica Meyer, Kenji Bunch and Clancy Newman, and a contemporary version of  L’histoire du Soldat featuring Mark Campbell and Joshua Bergasse.

Other artists appearing this year include conductor and pianist Michael Barrett; dancers Taeler Cyrus and Ashley Blair Fitzgerald; violinists LP How, Tessa Lark and Kristin Lee; and pianist Eric Zivian. A full list of performers can be found here.

Things to Do in Moab Utah

Set in the Colorado Plateau, Utah, Moab is simply stunningly beautiful. It has two national parks, Arches and Canyonlands, as well as Dead Horse Point State Park. The area is ideal for hiking and kayaking, with the Colorado River just to the north of town and the La Sal mountains to its south. For more information on things to do in Moab, click here.

Moab Music Festival Venues

You can download a handy map which details all the venues for the festival here.

When is the Moab Music Festival 2019

26 August to 12 September, 2019

Moab Music Festival Schedule

A full list of the concerts can be found here.

Moab Music Festival Tickets

Individual tickets for each concert are from $25. To buy purchase tickets either phone: 435-259-7003 or email: [email protected]

Moab is not the only music concert in the States, check out our 6 US American Music Festivals this Summer.

Flights to Moab

United Airlines flies, through Skywest, from Denver to Canyonlands Field Airport, Moab (18 miles north of the town) twice a day. Denver International Airport (six-hour drive), and Salt Lake City International Airport (four-and-a-half-hour drive) are the nearest major airlines.

Hotels in Moab

The Festival has a number of ‘lodging partners’. You can find the full list of them here. If you are looking at booking accommodation in Moab or flights to Denver you could use our search engine below, which scans all the major sites so that you don’t have to.

For any more information on the festival

Click here.

All photos by Richard Bowditch.