Trail Listening Post

Udo Fluck, Director of Arts Missoula Global at Arts Missoula stops by The Trail studio to chat with Mike Smith about all things Germanfest!

Arts Missoula GLOBAL presents Germanfest 2023 happening October 7th at Caras Park in Downtown Missoula. This celebration of our sister city connection with Neckargemund, Germany is an authentic German Food & Beer festival with live music, children's activities, a Germanfest market, a Sister City display  and MORE!  New in 2023: Germanfest Games! Stein Holding Contest, Fish Slapping Contest, and Log Sawing Contest!

The mission of Arts Missoula  is to connect art and culture through education, advocacy and community. This invaluable nonprofit organization

serves as a resource for the coordination, development, and support of art and culture for the benefit of the Missoula community, with the goals of: 

• Advocating for public and private support of the arts.
• Encouraging collaborative efforts among local arts organizations.
• Educating community leaders and policymakers about the economic benefits of the arts. 
• Celebrating the value of diverse cultures and helping our community understand its place in the world. 

For details on Germanfest and other programming go to artsmissoula.org

Joel Cummins and Ryan Stasik of Umphrey's McGee stop by the Trail Lunchbox for a visit with Tommy. 

In the twenty-four years since eclectic improv-rock band Umphrey’s McGee formed, their sound has been an amalgamation of genres, moods, and tempos, effortlessly flowing from one feeling to the next throughout an album or concert—or sometimes within a singular song. But with time and repetition comes wisdom and maturity, both personally and musically, and in the case of the band’s new album Asking For A Friend.

Umphrey’s McGee entered the recording studio with something to say and a wise, measured way to say it. The end result is an astoundingly cohesive fourteen-song album that feels like a fresh statement from a group of world-class musicians and friends re-approaching their craft with a new lens. But long-time fans will be happy to know that the Umphrey’s McGee they know and love is still very much present on Asking For A Friend, just more refined. More focused. 

Umphrey's McGee is performing at The Wilma in Downtown Missoula Friday, September 15th & Saturday, September 16th.

Tickets and details at logjampresents.com 

Mike Smith welcomes Julia Tai, Music Director of Missoula Symphony to The Lunchbox . The  new season for Missoula Symphony kicks off with "Struggle & Triumph" September 23rd & 24th at the Dennison Theatre in Missoula. 

This will be an evening of power, emotion, and triumph, featuring Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s Hiawatha Overture, which draws inspiration from the 1855 poem The Song of Hiawatha by American Poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The Hiawatha Overture also draws inspiration from the soundtrack to Rachmaninoff’s journey out of depression and darkness, and ascension into true joy, performed by rising star pianist, Charlie Albright. The evening concludes with Florence Price’s Symphony No. 3 in C minor, which was commissioned and composed at the height of the Great Depression and expresses stylistic themes at times reminiscent of Wagner, and at other times, Shostakovich.

Celebrate resilience, triumph, and true expressions of the human spirit through this collection of inspiring music!

Tickets available at: missoulasymphony.org

Abby Huseth, Deputy Director of Climate Smart Missoula stops by the Lunchbox to chat with Tommy about their upcoming event.
The 5th Annual Climate & Energy Expo is a FREE, family friendly event happening at Caras Park in Downtown Missoula Saturday, September 23rd 10am to 2pm.
 
This event will feature local solar installers, climate and sustainability organizations and businesses, an electric bike & car show, creative engagement and activation opportunities, kids activities, and more. This event will follow Climate Solutions Week, September 16th-22nd.

Climate Solution Week  will include  events across Missoula including: A climate panel at University of Montana, workshops focusing on climate solutions in the workplace, financing  home efficiency and electrification projects and more.

Full details can be found at missoulaclimate.org 

Montana Area Music Association (MAMA) co-founder Maria Zepeda stops by the Lunchbox to visit with Tommy about the 4th Annual Miles of Music happening September 10th on the University of Montana campus in Missoula. ·         

MAMA’s mission is to empower musicians through education, collaboration, and performance opportunities in efforts to strengthen the greater Montana music community.

Miles of Music is a dynamic celebration of art & music featuring over 20 local instrumentalists, songwriters and musicians. The event kicks off  at 12pm on Arthur Avenue and heads into the heart of campus, with 10 stations of musicians performing live. This FREE community event highlights  some of our most accomplished local musicians including local favorites Britt Arneson, Travis Yost and more!

4pm at the UM Oval 10 more amazing artists will be featured on 2 stages. Trail1033 will also be there from 3p-5p broadcasting LIVE.
Food trucks and a makers market will also be  part of this community event taking place Sunday, September 10th 12pm-8pm

Details and lineup can be found at mama4mt.org 

Michael Legg, Artistic Director of the Montana Repertory Theatre and Rep actor Stephen Blotzke stop by the Trail lunchbox for a visit with host Mike Smith. Established in 1967 and currently celebrating its 57th season, The Rep serves as the resident professional theatre for the University of Montana.

Performances of the season opener The Odyssey will take place at The Zootown Community Arts Center (ZACC) in Missoula September 1 at 7:00pm and September 2 at 2:00pm. The Odyssey follows the journey of Odysseus as he encounters Cyclops, sirens, and more on his 10-year voyage home after the Trojan War. Oglesby’s adaptation condenses this sprawling tale into a fast- paced, slapstick comedy performed by a small ensemble of three actors playing dozens of characters. Through imaginative storytelling and physical comedy, the play captures the poetry and tragedy of the original work while making it accessible to modern audiences.

Appropriate for sixth graders and up!

The Rep offers pick what you pay pricing structure, for details & tickets go to Montanarep.com

Mike Smith is joined in the Trail1033 studio with Jason Mandala, Farm to School Director with Garden City Harvest. The annual garden party is freshest party of the summer, happening Thursday August 17th at The PEAS farm in Missoula. Presented by the Good Food Store this event will include an all-local meal, grown with love right here in Missoula with a menu prepared by Silk Road and Missoula-made beverages from Imagine Nation Brewing and Western Cider. Music will be provided Cowboy Andy and the Salamanders (for the kiddos) and alt-country band the Best Westerns.

The mission of  Garden City Harvest is to  plant seeds and grow together to create a healthy Missoula on over 20 neighborhood farms, school gardens, and community gardens. Garden City Harvest accomplishes their mission through 4 main programs: Community Gardens,
Farm to School, Neighborhood Farms and Youth Development.

Tickets and details at gardencityharvest.org

Mike Smith chats with Deborah Stapley Graham  about the 2023  International Choral Festival happening in Missoula July 19-22.  Choirs from around the world are hand selected to participate in this event based on their musical excellence and variety. The  international choir visitors stay with welcoming hosts across Missoula throughout the Festival, sharing friendship, food, stories, and song. The 2023 festival includes choirs from Catalonia, Taiwan, Cost Rica, Poland, Germany, Lithuania, Uganda and more.

Several events are planned across Missoula.

Details at choral festival.org

Randy Katen, legendary Montana skateboarder and founding member of N-Men and Jeff Ament,  bassist of the  Pearl Jam stop by the Trail1033 morning show  with an update on the new Clinton Skate Park Project, expected to break ground in 2023.

The goal of the project is to create a positive gathering space for local kids. The skate park will bring renewed energy to Missoula County’s Clinton Community Park. Phase 1 of this project focuses on construction of a basic skate park facility. So far $125,000 has been raised through business, private, foundation and public funding. An extra $50,000 of local donations will secure Clinton’s spot on the construction schedule for Fall 2023. 
 

Interested in donating to this project?  Go to fmparks.org/projects/clinton-skatepark

Melanie Brock with the Missoula Midtown Association stops in to chat with Mike Smith regarding an upcoming event  for the Midtown Master Plan.
One of the primary objectives for The Missoula Midtown Association is interacting with business, community and government to help guide redevelopment, growth, and positive improvements to Missoula‘s Midtown. Early in the planning process, community members provided input on their future vision for Midtown. The plan is now complete and ready for public viewing. 

A FREE event is planned for the public to view the  Midtown Master Plan, Sunday June 11th at the Southgate Mall 12pm to 2pm in the Dillard's Parking lot. Food trucks will be on hand as well as Big Dipper ice cream, a bouncy house, family activities and more

Details at missoulamidtown.com