St. Olaf Band to perform throughout the Midwest
The St. Olaf Band will perform throughout Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin this October as part of its 2021 tour. This will be the band‘s first opportunity to perform for live audiences since February 2020, when music on the St. Olaf College campus — and around the world — stopped. The St. Olaf Band will be the first St. Olaf ensemble to resume the tradition of touring across the country, and they can’t wait to perform new music for audiences in the Midwest.
The St. Olaf Band, conducted by Timothy Mahr ’78, is the oldest music organization at St. Olaf College. Founded in 1891 and organized initially by students, the band’s early years were marked by its first tour in 1896 to nearby Kenyon, Minnesota, and performances on campus and in Northfield. The band will return to Kenyon once again — 125 year later — on this very tour.
“People need the arts in their lives not only to entertain, but to take you to a place where you can reflect and come away with a new understanding of the world around you,” says Mahr. “It’s important to acknowledge what we’ve been through, and we look forward to performing again on tour.”
People need the arts in their lives not only to entertain, but to take you to a place where you can reflect and come away with a new understanding of the world around you. It’s important to acknowledge what we’ve been through, and we look forward to performing again on tour.St. Olaf Band Conductor Timothy Mahr ’78
Touring both nationally and internationally has always been important to the St. Olaf Band. In 1906 the St. Olaf Band became the first American collegiate band to tour Europe when the ensemble performed a four-week, 30-concert tour of Norway. The band has subsequently toured internationally several times in Norway, Great Britain, Japan, central Europe, and recently in Australia and New Zealand in 2018.
This tour’s program, … with reverence and hope, will feature works for wind band, including music by Jack Stamp, Eric Ewazen, Edward Elgar, Timothy Mahr, and a premiere of Cathy Likhuta’s Planet B. The program will also feature student soloists and conductors.
This year also marks Mahr’s 28th year conducting the St. Olaf Band. His career with the St. Olaf Band began as a student in the 1970s, when he spent three years playing trombone in the ensemble. A widely sought guest conductor and nationally recognized and award-winning composer, Mahr has more than 100 works to his credit.
Tickets for the St. Olaf Band tour are free for all students and $10 for adults. Check out the full itinerary and get tickets at stolaf.edu/tickets or at the door.
