Frasier Vakuru Marimba Band Shines in Boston
The Frasier Vakuru Marimba Band took center stage in Boston on November 4, 2025, delivering a show-stopping performance at the 2025 LeadingAge Annual Meeting & Expo. Their appearance helped celebrate the installation of Frasier President & CEO Christie Hinrichs as Chair of the LeadingAge Board of Directors.
The 12-member ensemble, residents of Frasier, a senior living community in Boulder, guided by their talented instructors at Kutandara Studio, played to a packed audience of more than 6,000 attendees. The group performs high-energy traditional African music, with strong roots in Zimbabwean marimba. Their name, Vakuru, is a Shona word meaning “elders,” honoring both the tradition of marimba music and the experience and wisdom of the musicians who play it.
The band’s formation began in 2024 after Frasier residents and marimba enthusiasts Max Krimmel and Bonnie Carol donated nine African-style marimbas to Frasier. Max built and hand-crafted the instruments himself, making the gift especially meaningful. Their gift launched a campus-wide musical movement and helped inspire the creation of two dedicated music studios on Frasier’s campus, supported by more than $200,000 in resident and donor contributions. Today, these spaces serve as hubs for rehearsals, instruction, and joyful music-making.
The Vakuru Marimba Band takes class once each week with their instructor and practices another day or two each week during eight-week sessions in the fall and spring. They perform regularly for the Frasier community. To prepare for their Boston debut, they devoted additional rehearsals to perfecting their sound!
“Working with older adults at Frasier has been a joy,” says Amy Stewart McIntosh, Executive Director and co-founder at Kutandara. “What’s unique about this group of folks is the range of musical experience they bring; some made their livings as professional musicians, while others had no experience at all – and everywhere in between! We don’t use written music to learn, so it challenges everyone to work together as a community of learners. The desire to perform naturally grows out of feeling successful as a team.”
Resident player and donor Bonnie Carol added, “When Max and I donated our marimbas to Frasier back in 2021, we knew the amount of physical and mental study to learn the marimbas as well as the community produced by a band would be very beneficial to elders. We’re thrilled Frasier could imagine those benefits and support the creation of this program.”
Vakuru Marimba band members include Jean Berwick, Susan Bogatin, Bonnie Carol, Diane Coulter, Joanne Dukes, Linda Gore, Reggie Gray, Kay Forsythe, Max Krimmel, Sara Mayer, Mitch Stahl, and Stephanie Wrotny. They are taught and coached by Kutandara Executive Director Amy Stewart McIntosh and Board Member Kari Armstrong.
