Winter seasonal specials: beer and chamber music—the perfect combination!
Mighty Mo Brew Co. creates a music-inspired seasonal for the Chinook Winds’ Airs of Eastern Europe program
The Chinook Winds present a special winter concert experience for their audience and fellow craft beer lovers this January! The quintet has curated a program called Airs of Eastern Europe for the next Chamber Music Series concert and invited the Mighty Mo Brew Co to create a music-inspired seasonal brew to be released at the performances. For these shows, the Chinook Winds will also be joined by their newest member, clarinetist Cameron Winrow, for the very first time. Cameron auditioned and was offered the position of principal clarinet and Chinook Winds member in September of 2018 and assumes the position on January 1, 2019.
Airs of Eastern Europe Concerts are on Sunday, January 13, 2pm at Trinitas Chapel (University of Providence) and Tuesday, January 15, 7pm at the Masonic Lodge in downtown Great Falls. Single admission is $15 for adults and $5 for students. Family passes are $15 and include admission for one student and one adult. Bring-a-friend packages are available online only at gfsymphony.org and include two adult admissions for $25. Four-ticket passes are available for $45 (adults) and $16 (students). Season passes grant seven admissions and may be purchased for $75 (adults) and $25 (students). Tickets, packages, and season passes are available to purchase online at gfsymphony.org or at the door. For more information, contact the Symphony office at 406-453-4102 or visit gfsymphony.org.
The Chinook Winds continues their season with works exclusively by Eastern European composers: Grażyna Bacewicz, Endre Szervanszky, György Kurtág, and György Orban. The quintet’s newest member, Madeleine Folkerts says, “To help celebrate these concerts, we are excited to partner with the Mighty Mo Brewing Company.” The local brewery is creating a Baltic porter, inspired by the region from which this music originates and the new brew will be released at the performances.
After both performances on January 13 and 15, a reception will be held where audience members will have the opportunity to meet with the Chinook Winds members and guests age 21 and up will be treated to complimentary tastings of the Mighty Mo’s new Baltic porter!
The works featured on the Airs of Eastern Europe program were composed between 1932-1985; they reflect the distinct musical styles of Hungary and Poland, as well as the influence of politics and changing times. Bacewicz was the first significant female composer to emerge from Poland and remains a prominent figure in that category to this day. Her wind quintet was composed in 1932 and exemplifies the neoclassical style, where composers implemented elements from the classical era, such as emotional restraint and order. Szervanszky spent his career performing clarinet, teaching music theory, and composing in Budapest. His quintet, which ranges from light and gentle to virtuosic and exciting, was composed in 1953 (just a few years before the Soviet Union took control of Hungary). Kurtág lived and worked as a music teacher in Budapest during the takeover of the Soviet Union. In order to avoid political repercussion from a strict government, Kurtág composed infrequently and his compositions were avant-garde and not overtly political. His wind quintet was composed in 1959, just a few years after the Soviet Union took control. Rather than being bombastic and emotive, this quintet is subtle and angular, a testament to the repression of the times. Orban completed his quintet later, in 1985, and is still living in Hungary to this day. His quintet ranges from impressionistic and abstract to circus-like and jazzy.
For the Tuesday (January 13) performance of the Airs of Eastern Europe program, the Chinook Winds will perform at the Masonic Temple—a first for the quintet and for the Great Falls Symphony’s Chamber Music Series. The Masonic Temple was built in 1914 and completed in 1917. In 2000 the building was added to the National Register of Historic places. The structure originally served as the Masonic Temple for the Great Falls community and it has continued to be used in this manner for over 100 years. For the first few decades, the first floor consisted of a large ball room in which community dances were held. “Historically this building was the center of town and the place to meet and dance before the Civic Center was built [in the 1930’s],” says Dave Montgomery, a temple trustee. As society changed, trends in leisure activities evolved and these changes were also reflected operation of the Temple. The ball room was eventually transformed into a large meeting hall with stadium seating for approximately 200 people. Currently three Masonic Lodges meet in the Temple throughout the year, as well as other affiliated groups. On January 13, the Chinook Winds’ performance of Airs of Eastern Europe will be held in the first-floor meeting room (where the ballroom once was) and a reception with complimentary pints of the Mighty Mo Brew Co seasonal will follow.
This performance is a unique opportunity for the quintet to try a new performance venue and special occasion for the Symphony audience to visit an iconic building in Great Falls.
Airs of Eastern Europe concert schedule
2pm, Sun, Jan 13, Trinitas Chapel, University of Providence, 1301 20th St S
7pm, Tue, Jan 15, Masonic Lodge, 821 Central Ave
ADMISSION:
Individual tickets $15 Adults / $5 Students
Season Pass $75 Adults / $25 Students (7 admissions)
Four-Ticket Pass $45 Adults / $16 Students (4 admissions)
Family Package $15 (1 student + 1 adult admission)
Bring-a-Friend Package $25 (2 adult admissions) available only online at gfsymphony.org.
As the resident wind quintet of the Great Falls Symphony, members of the Chinook Winds serve as principal players in the Great Falls Symphony Orchestra as well as present chamber music and interactive school programs and residencies throughout Montana and the Northwest. The Chinook Winds have been performing throughout the region since 1992. Their performances have been praised for their excellent choice of literature, technical proficiency, and impressive artistry. In 2015 the Chinook Winds Quintet was featured on the Montana PBS show 11th & Grant With Erick Funk.
The Chinook Winds includes Norman Gonzales, flute; Lauren Blackerby, oboe; Cameron Winrow, clarinet; Madeleine Folkerts, horn; and Dorian Antipa, bassoon.
