Patti Nolan & The Undeniables + The Mitchell Bailey Large Ensemble
Tuesday, October 22 // Door at 7 PM // Show at 7:30 PM // $15 Patti Nolan & The Undeniables perform their unique and spirited blend of jazz classics and standards, with Patti on vocals, Ben Schuberg on piano, Pete Hand on bass, Graeme Pletscher on saxophone, and Ed Stalling on drums. The Mitchell Bailey Large Ensemble is a 17-piece jazz big band, featuring a plethora of creative musicians from the Missoula Music Scene. The band plays original music and arrangements by Mitchell Bailey, along with other members of the band and modern big band writers. Although listeners will hear nods to titans of music such as Thad Jones, Wayne Shorter, and Charlie Parker, the band is also heavily influenced by contemporary jazz, modern rock, free music, electronic music, and hip hop. For further information, accessibility, and inquiries please visit https://www.zootownarts.org/meet-the-zacc/about/.
Missoula Collective Music Ensemble, Conducted by Naomi Moon Siegel
Monday, October 21 // Doors at 7 PM // Show at 7:30 PM // $5-$25 Sliding Scale Admission Featuring the entire ensemble under conduction/direction by Siegel, these collective improvisations and compositions feature “conduction”, a jazz technique utilized to organize, expand and inspire improvisation in a large group setting. “Conduction” was created by the late Lawrence “Butch” Morris and is now used throughout the world. Siegel learned Conduction from playing in Wayne Horvitz’s ensemble for many years. The first set will be an open rehearsal, and then second set will be a performance utilizing the Conduction techniques practiced in the open rehearsal. For further information, accessibility, and inquiries please visit https://www.zootownarts.org/meet-the-zacc/about/.
And the light from which you came is now the [love] work we must do
Saturday, October 19 // Doors at 7 PM // Show at 7:30 PM // $20 **$12 Students & $5 for Kids 8 & Under (Door Only)** Bill Kautz premieres a new work for quartet on October 19th at the Zootown Arts Community Center. This composition, which balances composed material with improvisation, tells the story of the life, death and ongoing influence of his infant son Sterling through a family systems lens. In this work, Bill seeks to highlight the healing power of love and the ongoing journey of grief. It is his hope that others who have experienced the death of a child or loved one can not only relate to the challenging nature of living with grief, but can also feel that their story is heard and valued. It is through telling our stories that we honor our loved ones and lean more deeply into that love as we move forward with our lives. Love and beauty are still possible after loss, perhaps more pronounced than ever before. This work will be performed by Bill Kautz, trumpet; Jessica Catron, cello; Jeremy Drake, electric guitar and Aria Peters, violin. Opening performance by Michelle Boulé, dance. This work is made possible by a grant from the Montana Arts Council. ABOUT BILL KAUTZ Trumpet player, composer and educator Bill Kautz has worked in a variety of creative music projects in Missoula including work with Michelle Boulé, Cole Bronson, Jessica Catron, Jeremy Drake, Michael Musick, Tricia Opstad, Naomi Siegel, and as a leader/composer for his ensembles crosstalk and Golden Mean. He runs a trumpet studio for elementary to high school students and has worked at Sentinel High School providing support to the Concert and Symphonic bands. Bill is a recipient of a 2023 Montana Arts Council Strategic Investment Grant which is specifically for this new work as well as a 2023 City of Missoula Public Art Committee Performance Grant. ABOUT MICHELLE BOULÉ After 21 years in NYC, Michelle Boulé relocated to Missoula, MT, where she runs an international coaching+healing practice and continues dancing and creating. She has received commissions and presentations from multiple New York venues and beyond, including The Chocolate Factory, Danspace Project, Triple Canopy, Baryshnikov Arts Center, Summer Stages Dance @ICA Boston, River to River Festival, The Met Breuer (with Okkyung Lee), The Kitchen, Mount Tremper Arts Festival, and ISSUE Project Room. For further information, accessibility, and inquiries please visit https://www.zootownarts.org/meet-the-zacc/about/.
Loren Stillman & Haymaker
Wednesday, October 9 // Door at 7 PM // Show at 7:30 PM // $12 Advance // $15 Day of Show Haymaker is: Loren Stillman on Saxophone & Songs, Tommy Sciple on Bass, and John Wicks on Drums. One of the greatest challenges in music is making complexity feel natural and effortless. Saxophonist Loren Stillman continues to push his compositional boundaries, creating free-flowing pieces that draw from the past 60 years of American jazz — embracing its wide range of styles and temperaments: soft and loud, fast and slow, in tempo and out, free and composed, cluttered and sparse, swinging and non-swinging. His compositions challenge musicians to navigate these intricate musical landscapes while driving the music forward. To bring this vision to life, Stillman partners with collaborators, bassist Tommy Sciple and drummer John Wicks, performing a dynamic repertoire of new works. The saxophonist Loren Stillman communicates great intensity but not a lot of drama. He’s an intuitive self-regulating improviser, averse to any flourish that calls attention to itself. What you hear in his playing is the real-time synthesis of information, the melodic and harmonic, and the rigorous subtlety of his response. He pairs uncannily mature instincts with the open-minded spark of youth. – Nate Chinen, The New York Times In this first hearing I believe that as a writer and a stylist, he (Stillman) has found a previously unoccupied slot in the jazz spectrum, which is a very rare thing indeed. – Anthony Troon, Jazz Review UK The magic, that which entrances, is not technique, although Stillman obviously can play anything his mind hears. He is that special musician, one who is totally free. Stillman projects a searching intelligence far beyond his years with every note. – Budd Kopman, Cadence Magazine For further information, accessibility, and inquiries please visit https://www.zootownarts.org/meet-the-zacc/about/.
Owl the Conqueror + Turtle Tuesday + Donkey Okay
Monday, October 7 // Door at 7 PM // Show at 7:30 PM // $10 // $15-$20 Artist Supporter Born from the ashes of Writ Large, Owl the Conqueror is a groovy, bluesy, progressive grunge band. Driving rhythms and powerful guitars. Formed in 2022, and based out of Missoula MT, wearing their influences and hearts on their sleeves, strides Turtle Tuesday. Your new favorite local band. Meeting and forged in the blazing hot fires of heartbreak, raising reptiles, and playing 20+ year old video games. This electric and exciting DIY basement/garage punk/emo/folk/whatever group is hard focused on delivering you the best possible sounding method of receiving tinnitus. They’ll have you fumbling over your words when asked by your friends as to what genre they play, before you inevitably retire the effort and answer “uhh, rock”. Featuring frontman Kage, drummer Griffin, guitarist Collin and John on bass, expect electrifying performances with tracks whose lyrics detail a splendid range of topics. From whaling about death, to finding happiness, to the woes of public transportation infrastructure. Keep an eye out for their upcoming performances and debut project on the horizon. And in the meantime, they’d love for you to swing by the Hellgate Elk’s Club on Tuesdays to play Super Smash Bros Melee for the Nintendo Gamecube. Donkey Okay – With a silver moon just so, hanging low above the languid canyon walls, cacti shadow dancers stretch out across a scrub brush sea. A cricket stirs in anticipation. In the distance a desert hare thrums across the sandstone mesa: a bass note, burrowing owls chirp low: a tuning orchestra. Then comes the wind’s rising chorus, shifting sands through arroyo halls. A kind of peace, a subtle song, broken at once by the Donkey’s bray. For further information, accessibility, and inquiries please visit https://www.zootownarts.org/meet-the-zacc/about/.
Cactus Cuts w/ Kyle Hunter & The Mountain Standard
Sunday, October 6 // Door at 7 PM // Show at 7:30 PM // $10 // $15-$20 Artist Supporter Cactus Cuts, a five-piece Americana band from Bozeman, MT, continues to captivate audiences by weaving together modern songwriting with americana styling. Forming in 2022, they have continued to fine-tune their passion and foot stomping energy on stages with The Last Revel, Laney Lou and the Bird Dogs, AJ Lee and Blue Summit, Midland, and many other artists across the US. They’ve headlined venues such as Pine Creek Lodge and the Rialto, and taken the stage at The Elm, Bridger Brewing Amphitheater, and other popular Northwestern venues. Whether performing in intimate venues or commanding larger stages, their passion for the music and genuine camaraderie shines through, creating an unforgettable experience for their audience. Hailing from rugged landscapes of Montana, Kyle Hunter is an emerging force in the Americana and alt-country scene. Blending the raw, untamed spirit of the West with heartfelt lyrics and rich harmonies. His music captures the essence of life in the mountains and out on the road. Influenced by the likes of Marty Robbins, Patsy Cline, & The Allman Brothers, Kyle Hunter & his band bring a fresh, contemporary edge to traditional country sounds. Their live performances are a stirring mix of foot-stomping energy and soulful ballads, making them a must-see act for fans of roots music. As they continue to gain traction, Kyle Hunter & The Mountain Standard are quickly becoming a band to watch in the Americana world. For further information, accessibility, and inquiries please visit https://www.zootownarts.org/meet-the-zacc/about/.
Goth Ball
Saturday, October 26 // 8 PM to Midnight // $15 It’s time for the Montana Goth Ball! Release the bats Saturday, October 26 at the ZACC! DJs GingerBat and Sister Midnight will bring you the spookiest tunes along with a LIVE performance by Negative Gain recording artist Order of The Static Temple. DJs will rotate throughout the night, so be ready to DANCE! This is your excuse to dress up and party! Gothic, leather, punk, Victorian, latex, lace (if in doubt, wear black). Dress to DEPRESS! For further information, accessibility, and inquiries please visit https://www.zootownarts.org/meet-the-zacc/about/.
Dreams of Winterreise: Music Inspired by Schubert
Sunday, November 24 // Door at 7 PM // Show at 7:30 PM // $30 GA // $10 for Students Conceived as a journey into the cold of winter, Franz Schubert’s Winterreise sets to music a selection of poems by Wilhelm Müller: Seventy-Seven Poems from the Posthumous Papers of a Travelling Horn-Player. Fluidly drifting between the world of dreams and bitter reality, the wanderer is heard in conversation with their own heart, by turns reflective, questioning, ironic, and finally resigned. Schubert’s achievement in setting these poems is to give musical life to the wanderer’s symbolic companions – the sun, wind, trees and leaves, flowers, rivers and snow, crows and ravens – not only in the contours of the singer’s melody, but especially in the pictorial vividness of the piano score. Our first concert of the season, Dreams of Winterreise, will feature works inspired by Schubert’s beloved masterpiece. December Songs by Maury Yeston (composer of Tony Award-winning “Nine”) is a retelling of Franz Schubert’s Winterreise with a cabaret sensibility. Where the Schubert masterpiece features Müller’s poems portraying a jilted young man’s wandering the snows of the Vienna woods and ultimately sinking into madness, the Yeston lyrics depict a contemporary young woman wandering a snowy Central Park in New York City and finding recovery and hope on her journey. Composer Jay Schwartz was especially bold in his reworking of Winterreise. Schubert’s vocal melody remains intact while the saxophone ensemble assumes the emotional burden of the wanderer’s inner turmoil. Schwartz’s music has been described as “us[ing]the overtone spectrum, microtonality, and glissandi in a poetic context with a captivating sensuous drawing power and an unabashed emotional disposition.” The result is a captivating and wholly immersive take on Winterreise. Concert Program: Selections from Winterreise by Franz Schubert Selections from Winterreise by Jay Schwartz Selections from December Songs by Maury Yeston Caitlin Cisler (soprano), Jan Halmes (piano), Jesse Dochnahl, Johan Eriksson, Brooke Florence, Owen Kirby, Lewis Nelson, and Jared Supola (saxophones) For further information, accessibility, and inquiries please visit https://www.zootownarts.org/meet-the-zacc/about/.
Sunbather Die (Seattle) w/ Poverty Porn & The New Nightmare
Wednesday, September 25 // Door at 7 PM // Show at 7:30 PM // $10 // $15-$20 Artist Supporter Sunbather Die is a trio based in a Ballard basement too short to stand in. Long time friends and brothers drawing influence from everything on the planet they’ve seen so far up to this point. Tragic noises and cannabis and pessimistic loudness. Poverty Porn is a three-piece punk rock band from Missoula, Montana. Their queer and BIPOC backgrounds also shape their unique perspective. The band’s guitarist and vocalist, Kye, is a member of the Meskwaki First Nation from Iowa, while their bassist, Anthony, is Puerto Rican. The band has had several drummers in their rotating cast, some of whom are also people of color. Their music is characterized by buzzsaw guitars, heavy bass riffs, and gruff vocals, with deeply personal and raw lyrics exploring addiction, frustration, and the struggles of life. With their latest EP, “Upper-Middle-Class-Softcore,” produced by Nataanii of the Missoula rock band Fuuls, the band showcases even more sonically punishing and emotionally charged songs than their previous releases. Their high-energy live shows create a sense of community among fans and make them a force to be reckoned with in the punk scene. Poverty Porn has a bright future ahead of them as they continue to tackle complex and uncomfortable topics with self-deprecation and humor. The New Nightmare is a hard rock band out of Missoula sharing tales of living through the new nightmare. Thrash metal / grunge / and psychedelic influences with haunting vocals and driving riffs. All tickets are general admission. Artist Supporter Tickets are a way for patrons to provide more financial support to performers. For further information, accessibility, and inquiries please visit https://www.zootownarts.org/meet-the-zacc/about/.
Jan Richter (Prague) w/ Roy’s Orb (New Orleans) & Wailing Aaron Jennings
Monday, September 23 // Door at 7 PM // Show at 7:30 PM // $10 // $15-$20 Artist Supporter Janny Richter plays a hellfire-red guitar from the cradle of a blister beech rocking chair, demanding his place in heaven with greasy, unrepentant Delta-style blues. A gristle-coated gospel terraforms the stage into wind swept buttes and haunted plains. His lyrics are swollen and sizzled. His eyes gone black. Drink deep as the sun burns out. You don’t mind. Starlight falls hot on a hungry soul. Roy’s Orb is a budding alt-country project of Ryan Carr (formerly of Cairns) who has spent the past four years quietly writing and building up a library of songs. Currently based out of New Orleans, these songs are inspired by different corners of America, especially western Montana. Stories about nature, long highways, and life’s changes over slippery banjo melodies come out of a desire for honesty in music and capturing snapshots in a changing world. Influences range from Townes Van Zandt and Johnny Cash to Bill Callahan and Angel Olsen. This Roy’s Orb 8-show tour across the Midwest is meant to help kickstart a debut album featuring professional musicians and unconventional arrangements. A third-generation Montanan who had the good luck or bad timing to be born in Texas, Wailing Aaron Jennings is a singer and songwriter living in Missoula. Inspired by a book of songs and poetry written by his great-grandfather, a singing cowboy in the 1920’s, and the words “Yodel Here”, this young punk unplugged his guitar and started hooting and hollering in the mountains, valleys, and tunnels. Jennings’s songs champion the traditions of Honky Tonk and Western Swing while giving a knowing wink and a nod to the modern world. Every song is a story whether it’s a rambling waltzing exposition, a dance tune punctuated with acrobatic yodels, or a rockin’ boogie woogie – the ghosts of the past are jumping, shouting and dancing right along with Wailing Aaron Jennings (and YOU!). All tickets are general admission. Artist Supporter Tickets are a way for patrons to provide more financial support to performers. For further information, accessibility, and inquiries please visit https://www.zootownarts.org/meet-the-zacc/about/.
