Meet Chappell Kingsland | Professional Musician

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

Hi Chappell, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Musical talent is not just for the superstars. There are so many PHENOMENALLY talented instrumentalists and vocalists right around us in Colorado! I founded the Wild Beautiful Orchestra as a way to collaborate with many of these musicians. I am the Executive Director, Musical Arranger, and a Performer (on piano, guitar, bass, percussion and vocals). I absolutely love every part of the process: dreaming up the most exciting concerts and recordings that I can imagine, working with a team to make it possible, writing the musical arrangements, rehearsing with awesome musicians, recording in the studio, and performing for diverse audiences. I get to do all these things that I love while I’m creating work opportunities for other musicians.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Wild Beautiful Orchestra’s membership is flexible and project-based. This means that we bring in classical players when we’re performing orchestral music, R&B vocalists and rhythm section when we’re performing R&B, jazz musicians when we’re performing jazz, and so on. As the Musical Arranger, I design each concert and write all the arrangements (customized for our performers) so that each song draws from the original and adds new twists, always vibrant and exciting, with great emotional depth.

Since our first concert in 2019, players and audiences have absolutely loved the WBO’s fresh approach, the incorporation of many musical genres, the collaborations with other groups and young musicians, the creative visual aesthetics. A lot of people recognize that we have a different starting point, open and inclusive and celebratory of many cultures. Outreach to young musicians is central to our mission: we have produced three showcase concerts (in which kids are the soloists, with orchestral accompaniment), two performances which include our Youth String orchestra, and a shared concert with Kent Denver School’s top bands.

Through a ton of hard work from our leadership team, and good relations with a large collective of musicians, we have enjoyed many successful concerts, outreach events and recording projects in our first five years. The present challenge is how to get more donations and diversify our income streams, so that we can continue growing along this trajectory. Eventually we’ll be producing sold-out concerts in bigger and bigger venues, collaborating with several schools each year, growing a international fanbase for our recordings, and providing the orchestra for major touring artists when they visit Red Rocks.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Not surprisingly, I’m centered on the locations with live music! A visit to Colorado isn’t complete without taking in a show at Red Rocks, one of the most gorgeous concert venues in the world. I love to get dinner downtown and check out an intimate jazz show at Dazzle or Nocturne. The Mercury Café is a totally unique spot with excellent food, a rich variety of cultural experiences, and terrific performances by all kinds of musicians.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Thanks to my primary collaborators: Taylor Gonzales (Musical Director and Conductor of the WBO), Aaliyah Shambé, JC Maheu and Rachel Winnick (Vocalists), Adriene, Don & Bill (the Board of the WBO), Lauren Kingsland (my mom, lifelong fan and #1 promoter), and my wife, Jennifer Kingsland (harpist & singer, graphic designer, co-founder of Strings of Brigid).

Website: https://wildbeautifulorchestra.org/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildbeautifulorchestra/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WildBeautifulOrchestra

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@wildbeautifulmusic

Other: Celtic concert in Denver: https://www.zeffy.com/ticketing/windows-to-ireland-march-16–2025
Celtic concert in Boulder: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/windows-to-ireland-march-23–2025

Image Credits
Jennifer Kingsland