this is how it started

founded in 2000 by Rob Miller and friends in order to bring high quality live music to Western Colorado. Since that time we have produced numerous concerts at a number of venues around the state, including The Paradise Theatre (Paonia, CO), The Tabor Opera House (Leadville, CO), The Public House (Crested Butte, CO) to name a few.  

Here's the timeline.  Our first Colorado concert was with Yonder Mountain String Band in 2000.  In 2008 Pickin' Productions started two free summer concert series in the beautiful Western Colorado towns of Paonia and Ridgway (Pickin' in the Park, Paonia and the Ridgway Concert Series).  Then in 2012 we helped launch the Mountain Air Music Series in Ouray, CO.  And in 2017 we started a brand new Free Summer Concert Series in Moab, Utah in conjunction with the Moab Folk Festival.  We're now working with the folks at Delicious Orchards in Paonia and the Mad Dog Cafe in Crawford booking summer shows.   And in 2018, we began a summer series at the Tabor Opera House in Leadville, CO.  As well as started booking bands year round at the Public House in Crested Butte, CO.  And here we are!

Supporting local organizations has always been a focus of Pickin' Productions, raising awareness within our community of some non-profit organizations that are doing good work.  We've worked extensively with KVNF Public Radio, The North Fork Valley Creative Coalition/District, The Western Slope Environmental Resource Council (now the Conservation Center), The Paonia Public Library, Habitat for Humanity of the San Juans, The Paonia Elementary School, North Fork Montessori School, the North Fork River Improvement Association and others.

Originally from New York, Rob has called the beautiful North Fork Valley and town of Paonia, Colorado home since 1999. As owner and talent buyer for Pickin’ Productions, he has helped pioneer a vibrant and diverse music scene on the Western Slope of the Rocky Mountains for over two decades. Pickin' promotes several free and beloved community concert series', in addition to well-curated shows at popular venues from Colorado to Utah, and beyond. Rob recently launched Music In Communities (MIC), a Colorado-based nonprofit with a focus on music education for kids and schools in the region. He worked for many years as a booking agent with Quicksilver Productions for a stable of national and international bands, and was a founding member of Sweet Sunny South. Rob's joy is watching his two daughters, Sadie and Kayla, become the incredible young women that they are, and he still plays lots of music. He can be seen out occasionally with guitar in hand alongside Erika Moss as the duo, Ford & Fitzroy.