The day the music survived: Nearly 300 instruments collected for Marshall Fire victims

Travis Albright poses with some of the donated instruments he has collected at his home in Lafayette on Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2022. Albright expects to collect more than 300 instruments to donate to people who lost theirs in the Marshall Fire. (Matthew Jonas/Staff Photographer)

PUBLISHED: January 18, 2022 at 8:20 p.m. | UPDATED: January 18, 2022 at 8:21 p.m.

Donated instruments are seen at Travis Albright’s home in Lafayette on Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2022. Albright expects to collect more than 300 instruments to donate to people who lost theirs in the Marshall Fire. (Matthew Jonas/Staff Photographer)

Travis Albright, executive director of the nonprofit Future Arts Foundation, has collected more than 280 instruments to replace those lost in the Marshall Fire.

Albright announced early this month that he would be conducting the donations drive to get instruments back into the hands of those devastated by the fire. About 80% of the instruments will be donated to the Boulder Valley School District on Monday.

At noon Feb. 5, he plans to host a free music shop so people recovering from the fire can shop for an instrument of their choosing. Anyone who lost an instrument and wants the location details is asked to contact him at futureartsfoundation@gmail.com.

Travis Albright, founder of Future Arts Foundation, an organization that is helping to replace instruments lost in the Marshall Fire, sits on the steps of Macky Auditorium in Boulder, in 2021. FAF’s annual Bluebird Music Festival is scheduled for April 23-24 at Macky. (Jessica Luann/Courtesy photo)

Due to space and storage constraints, Albright will resume collecting instrument donations after he makes the delivery to the school district. He is also collecting funds to help pay for repairs that are being made to the donated instruments.

In addition, donations will aid Albright in purchasing more instruments so he can replace exact kinds that might have been lost in the flames. Those interested can donate at fafcolorado.org/donate. For every instrument donated in January or financial contribution over $100, Albright will provide a pair of tickets to the Bluebird Music Festival, which is set for April 23-24 at Macky Auditorium on the University of Colorado Boulder campus.