Aspen Music Festival and School - Definition and Overview

Founded in 1949, the Aspen Music Festival and School is an internationally renowned classical music festival that presents world-class music in an intimate, small-town setting. It is also one of the world's premier training grounds for pre-professional musicians. The Festival and School was founded by intellectuals and visionaries Elizabeth and Walter Paepcke of Chicago and is rooted in the lofty idea that it is the combination of art and nature that fosters the growth of the human spirit. Fifty-some years later, this guiding principle still informs every aspect of the organization.