By Byron Reed, 9 News KUSA Denver | A Colorado nonprofit is racing against an April 5 deadline [BUT you can still donate] to collect donated musical instruments from across the state, part of an annual drive that has placed more than 9,500 instruments in the hands of students at under-resourced schools over the past 16 years.
Bringing Music to Life, which was founded in 2009 after emerging from Colorado Public Radio, is running its 2026 instrument drive through April 5, with 18 drop-off locations stretching from the Denver metro to Grand Junction and Colorado Springs. The organization accepts band and orchestra instruments — woodwinds, brass, strings and percussion, including guitars and electronic keyboards — and partners with local repair shops to refurbish donations before distributing them to Title I and under-resourced schools throughout Colorado.
“We’ve been able to distribute over 9,500 instruments to 360 schools throughout Colorado, and that’s impacted, we estimate upwards of 25,000 young musicians,” said Dr. Steve Holley, executive director of Bringing Music to Life.
Holley said demand has surged this year. The organization typically receives about 50 school applications annually for roughly 700 instruments, but in 2026, applications are up 40%, translating to a 70 to 75% increase in requests for instruments.
“The need has never been greater,” Holley said. “If you’re waiting for the right time, now is the right time.”
At the heart of the drive’s repair operation is Rocky Mountain Music Repair, a full-service brass and woodwind shop in Broomfield owned by Brian and Deanna Stevenson. The shop has partnered with Bringing Music to Life for five or six years, handling logistics for instrument pickup from drop-off sites across the Front Range and doing the bulk of the brass and woodwind repair work.
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More information and a full list of drop-off locations are available at https://www.bringingmusictolife.org.
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Go here to read the full story and about how you can donate:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/colorado-nonprofit-s-annual-instrument-drive-aims-to-put-playable-instruments-in-students-hands/
