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These are the highest-rated things to do in Montana using data from Tripadvisor.
Legendary pianist and multi-Grammy Award winning composer Billy Childs will play The Myrna Loy at 7:30 p.m. on Jan. 31 with his jazz quartet.
The Billy Childs Quartet brings jazz to The Myrna Loy at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 31.
Tickets are $35. Call or visit The Myrna Loy box office at 406-443-0287, 15 N. Ewing St., or online at themyrnaloy.com.
With an illustrious music career spanning more than four decades, Childs revisits his roots in this performance with “unfettered, unpretentious” jazz.
“For the last seven years, I’ve been recording for Mack Avenue, a label that was founded in Detroit, and is now based out of LA,” says Childs. “Before that, I was doing lofty projects – chamber stuff, strings, phonics – but I wanted to get back to how I started – small group jazz.”
Childs released his first album back in 1988 on Windham Hill’s Jazz label to much acclaim, but started gaining notoriety more for his composition work, chamber jazz ensembles and award-winning arrangements for artists like Sting, Yo-Yo Ma, Renee Flemming, Chris Botti and more.
“I was getting a lot of recognition for what I was doing, an amalgam of classical and jazz, but people didn’t realize the genesis of that was my Windham Hill stuff.”
“It had been a long time since I put out just a jazz album,” says Childs. “I wanted people to hear those songs, put through the lens of where I’m at now.”
Of the three albums to result in these past years of recording, two have garnered Grammy nominations, with “Winds of Change” taking home the 2024 Grammy for “Best Jazz Instrumental Album.”
Childs has been traveling for the past year, playing the music from these albums with his quartet that consists of Lenard Simpson on saxophone, Ari Hoenig on drums and Matt Penman on bass.
Childs recalled previously playing The Myrna Loy, remembering with a laugh the auditorium that was housed in an old jail. When asked his favorite place to play, he remarked, “I don’t play for the city I’m in, I play for the people in my midst.”
“I could play in Dubuque, Iowa, or Muncie, Indiana, Chicago, New York, Tokyo, it doesn’t matter,” Childs said. “I love playing music with people who will listen, who want the music. No city has the patent on that.”
The Helena Music Teachers Association is having their annual Celebrate Music! Recital at 7 p.m. on Feb. 8.
This recital is a free, family-friendly event for the public at Covenant United Methodist Church, 2330 E. Broadway St., that offers a smorgasbord of musical styles, instruments and performers.
Some performers are teachers, who range in age from 10-70, and are members of the organization; many others are students who have won scholarships to extend their musical education via summer music camps such as ones offered at UM and Helena’s own Last Chance Music Camp.
The recital will feature flutes, clarinet, guitar, cello and piano. Refreshments are available afterward, as is a donation basket – all donations will support future scholarships which are given every spring.
People may also visit the website, http://helenamta.org to find a teacher, join the group, or donate there.
The Bray Gallery: Downtown will have the “Brick by Brick Mini Auction: Cheers!” Jan. 22-24, 434 N. Last Chance Gulch.
This auction focuses on donated collections from artists or feature themes predominantly found at The Bray. This latest Brick by Brick Auction features ceramic art perfect for beverages.
The Bray will host a closing reception at the Bray Gallery: Downtown from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Jan. 24. The public may hold cups and mugs made by Bray artists and clay community members.
Attendees can place final bids before the auction closes at 7 p.m.
Cardiello Art Garage at 912 8th Ave. in Helena will have “No-school day Art Camps,” 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Jan. 27 and Feb. 17. Cost is $50 per day.
Adult Art Class is 10 a.m. to noon Thursdays, $20 per class.
5th grade Middle School/High School Art Class, is 5-6:30 p.m. Tuesdays and $20 per class.
For more information, go to https://cardielloartgarage.com/contact or call 406-438-3858.
There will be a free screening of “Tantura,” a critically acclaimed film by Israeli director Alon Schwarz, at 7 p.m. on Jan. 30 at Helena College, 1115 N. Roberts St.
This 2022 film tells the story of a Palestinian village that was erased in 1948. Israelis refer to this conflict as “the War of Independence” and Palestinians call it “al-Nakba,” an Arabic term meaning “the catastrophe.”
“Tantura” suggests that truth is the key to justice and reconciliation, event organizers said. A short discussion will follow the 85-minute film.
This event is a local fundraiser for Medical Aid for Palestinians, a nonprofit organization based in London that provides on-the-ground medical aid in Gaza, the West Bank and Southern Lebanon.
The public is encouraged to donate at the door or online: https://bit.ly/HelenaMAP.
The Lewis & Clark Library will host a visit by Elizabeth C. Bunce, celebrated author of the award-winning Myrle Hardcastle Mystery Series for middle grade readers and other acclaimed novels for young adults.
Elizabeth C. Bunce
She will be in Helena 1 p.m. Feb. 2, at the Helena Middle School Auditorium, 1025 N. Rodney St.
The event is free and open to the public.
This presentation will be suitable for all ages, inspiring both young and old with the power of historical storytelling.
Visit www.lclibrary.org for more information.
Cohesion Dance Project is hosting a dance party, “Everybody Dance Now,” from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Feb. 1 at the Holter Museum of Art, 12 E. Lawrence St.
The event will feature a lively mix of music genres and decades by DJ Matt Schmidt. Specific times will focus on certain music styles/ages, but attendees can come for all or a portion of the evening.
5-6 p.m.: Kids Bop – Family Dance
6-7 p.m.: TikTok Radio Hour
7-10 p.m.: Everybody Dance Now!
All ages are welcome. No dance experience is required. Light snacks will be available along with nonalcoholic beverages, a dessert auction and a no-host cash bar.
The event supports Cohesion’s School & Community Outreach fund.
Tickets are $25 for adults and $15 for youth under 18, available at cohesiondance.org.
Tickets will also be available at the door. For more information, call 406-422-0830 or email cohesiondanceproject@gmail.com.
Join the Lewis & Clark Library Foundation and Lewis & Clark Library at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 28 to celebrate Helena’s own Diane Carlson Evans, who will share her story and how she came to write “Healing Wounds: A Vietnam War Combat Nurse’s 10-Year Fight to Win Women a Place of Honor in Washington, D.C.”
Diane Carlson Evans
The free event, which the public may attend, will be held in the library’s large community room at 120 S. Last Chance Gulch. A brief reception will follow the presentation and Montana Book Company will have copies of “Healing Wounds” for sale.
Evans is a Vietnam War nurse who made it her mission to establish a memorial for the women who served in the Vietnam War. After waging a fierce advocacy campaign for 10 years, Evans opened the National Mall ceremony to dedicate the Vietnam Women’s Memorial on Nov. 11, 1993.
For more on events, go to http://lclibfoundation.org and on Facebook.
The Mai Wah Society will once again host Butte America’s annual Chinese New Year Parade, which has been described as the shortest, loudest, and (sometimes) coldest parade in Montana.
Celebrating the “Year of the Snake,” the parade will be held 3 p.m. Feb. 1. It will start at the Butte-Silver Bow Courthouse (155 West Granite).
The parade will head east on Granite Street with the dragon stopping along the route to bless business sponsors. Those in attendance are encouraged to follow the dragon and become part of the procession. Following the parade, a reception with refreshments will be held at the Mai Wah Museum (17 West Mercury Street).
The Butte-Silver Bow Public Library is offering a craft opportunity for families. It will provide take-and-make-craft bags that families can take home and make a dancing dragon. For more information, contact the library at (406) 792-1080.
Submissions to the Around the Town calendar should be emailed to irarts@helenair.com and should be 200 words or fewer. Submissions should be written in story form, no flyers please. Please write “Around the Town” in the subject line. Call Phil Drake at 406-447-4086 if you have questions.
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These are the highest-rated things to do in Montana using data from Tripadvisor.
The Billy Childs Quartet brings jazz to The Myrna Loy at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 31.
Elizabeth C. Bunce
Diane Carlson Evans
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