We had the good fortune of connecting with Bob Lord and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Bob, how does your business help the community?

The Black Rose Acoustic Society is a non-profit music community founded in 1994 by local musicians Charlie Hall, Hope Greitzer, and Murry Stewart. Over the years, the Rose has evolved into an intimate music resource in service to the citizens of the Pikes Peak region. The Black Rose promotes music in all genres of traditional acoustic music. Examples are folk, bluegrass, Americana, Western, Gypsy swing, Celtic, and others played on traditional instruments. We meet for our concerts in the Black Forest Community Center just outside the Springs, a 1929 log structure with great acoustics and a warm, down-home vibe.

We produce intimate, twice-monthly concerts, weekly music jams, and inexpensive group music classes, all to keep roots music alive. The Rose has fostered many young musicians along the way, through scholarships, mentoring, and stage-craft development at our shows.

Ask about acoustic music in the Colorado Springs area, and folks will undoubtedly mention The Black Rose Acoustic Society. So much so, that we were voted “Best Non-Profit Arts Group” in the Gazette newspaper’s annual poll. We were also awarded our local NPR radio station’s “Community Weaver Award” for our public service.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally? What are you most proud of in your work life?

I’m an electronic engineer by profession, now retired for 8 years. I’ve always been blessed with intense curiosity and lots of interests, and my career reflects that. After a couple years of cubicle-bound computer design after college, I spent many years as a field-service engineer traveling for work. I lived and worked on oceanographic ships in the Atlantic, Med, and Pacific theaters, worked in computer centers all over the US and Europe, lived in Germany teaching computer theory and maintenance, managed a 6-state region of field-service engineers, and then left the profession for 5 years to work in the resort industry as a professional ski patrolman and river guide. I ended my working years back in technology, in software development at Hewlett-Packard here in Colorado Springs.

I guess that, if there’s anything I’m most proud of work-wise, it’s that all that travel and those many work environments have given me a certain ability to adapt and persevere in life. All in all, I’ve been very fortunate to have experienced so much travel, so many work environments, and so many wonderful people, and I try not to forget that every day.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Naturally, the first place I’d take friends from out of town would be The Black Rose Acoustic Society for a warm evening of terrific roots music. Other favorite venues for performance arts are Stargazers Theater (run by wonderful folks, John and Cindy Hooton) and our city’s terrific concert hall, The Pikes Peak Center.

At least a few evenings, we’d hang out at home, cooking and enjoying each other’s company. For breakfast/lunch outings, you can’t beat any of the Urban Egg locations or the New Day Cafe. For a quaff or two along with great dinner options, we’d hit just about any of the many brewpubs in the area, They’re all great, large and small.

The Springs offers way, too many sightseeing options to count. A visit to the Garden of the Gods is mandatory, and for those OK with elevation, a trip up Pikes Peak itself on the cog train is always fun. A drink or two at The Broadmoor Hotel is fun, and the new Olympic Museum is well worth seeing.

There are hundreds of trails and parks in our area, so getting outside for hikes, runs, or bike rides is both easy and a beautiful experience.

When friends visit the area, finding things to do and showing them around is always a pleasure.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
The Black Rose’s success is a result of the vision of our founders and the energy and time donated by hundreds of volunteers over the 25 years The Rose has been in existence. In particular, the families of Charlie Hall and Jeff Smith were involved for many, many years in service of The Rose. They were all the heart and soul of The Rose during its formative years.

Another major factor in our success has been our close relationship with the good folks of the Black Forest Community Club. The BFCC is the civic organization that owns and preserves our historic, 1929 concert venue. Our long-term partnership on the venue allows us to keep our concert prices low to the public and even lower to our members.

Of course, no concert organization could be successful without the incredible talent and creative vision of our performers. Touring musicians from all over the world have graced our stage to experience our enthusiastic, attentive audiences and the vibe of our log venue. We have our favorites, but we also love to bring talented, new artists to our audiences.

Website: http://www.blackroseacoustic.org

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/blackroseacousticsociety/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/blackroseacoust

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Black-Rose-Acoustic-Society-150455705005310/

Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/blackroseacoustic

Image Credits
All photos courtesy Todd Ryan Performance Photography

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