Barb Dye hard at work. Photo by Mark Stout Photography.
Our thanks to Ryan Chrys who suggested to Voyage Denver that they cover Barb in their website bios! The COMBO board will also be featured in the coming months so be sure to check them out so you can see the amazing talent that runs COMBO – an all volunteer, not-for-profit organization!
Today we’d like to introduce you to Barb Dye.
Barb, before we jump into specific questions, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I have always been interested in music! Started taking viola lessons at the age of eight, went to guitar then piano. Ended up playing 14 different instruments, none of them very well except for the drums. I played drums in a rock band in high school and we entertained at U.S.O. shows all over Colorado & Wyoming. I majored in Geological sciences in college and minored in Music.
Many years later, I was co-director of a stage play at the local high school and I heard a band practicing in the band room. I encouraged them to enter the local Kiwanis Club Stars of Tomorrow show and they won. They asked me to be their manager and I was hooked! I eventually went back to college and found an Entertainment Management degree at the University of Colorado – Denver and went for that. In 2002, I joined the Colorado Music Association (n/k/a COMBO).
In July 2005, I was elected president, a position I’ve been re-elected to ever since. I have tried to respect and utilize all the talents of our board members who all do something special in the “business” of music – photographers, sound engineers, artist management, marketing, talent, lawyers, and more. I am always on the lookout for unique artists because I love the management side. And I love networking and connecting people with the services they need to succeed in show business. I have been a judge for many contests (Kiwanis, Country Showdown, various clubs’ contests, Miss Colorado, etc.) but always try to talk to the contestant to tell them what area I thought they could use improvement in so that they could get better at their craft. In recent years, I have come to see how important songwriters are to the music industry and have tried to encourage that talent.
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Read the full interview at: http://voyagedenver.com/interview/meet-barb-dye/
While you’re there, read up on Ryan Chrys & The Rough Cuts!
http://voyagedenver.com/interview/meet-ryan-chrys-ryan-chrys-rough-cuts-denver/