Northern hosts 'Crossing Boundaries: Musings on Bach in the Backcountry'

Press release

Montana State University-Northern's 2015-2016 Chancellor's Lecture Series will present "Crossing Boundaries: Musings on Bach in the Backcountry," a collaborative performance piece featuring Jennifer Smith and Scott Friskics.

The program will take place Thursday, Sept. 24, at 7:30 p.m., int the Hensler Auditorium in Northern's Applied Technology Center. The performance is free.

A few years ago, Jennifer and Scott spent two weeks at a Forest Service cabin in the Bob Marshall Wilderness as artists-in-residence with the Artist Wilderness Connection Program, sponsored by the Hockaday Museum of Art of Kalispell, Bob Marshall Wilderness Foundation, Flathead National Forest and Swan Ecosystem Center.

"Crossing Boundaries" is the result of the duo's residency experience, as expressed through the interacting artistic voices of solo viola music and creative nonfiction.

Approximately one hour in length, the performance explores the meaning of wilderness in contemporary society, while offering a glimpse of the many ways in which wilderness and civilization give definition and meaning to one another through their mutual interaction.

Scott Friskics is a writer who, for 22 years has worked as a teacher and administrator at Aaniiih Nakoda College on the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation. His writings on wilderness and the environment have appeared in a variety of publications, including the journals Environmental Ethics and Ethics and the Environment. Friskics holds bachelor degrees in Religious Studies and Biology from Colgate University,  a Master's in Environmental Studies from the University of Montana and a Master's in Philosophy from the University of North Texas.

Jennifer Smith is principal viola of the String Orchestra of the Rockies, serves on the faculty of the Red Lodge Music Festival, and is an active teacher of viola and violin in Great Falls. She also is a member of the Chanticleer String Quartet, performing their summer festival based out of Richmond, Indiana. For 17 years she was principal viola of the Great Falls Symphony and violist of the Cascade Quartet. Her musical studies include the Peabody Conservatory, Yale University and the Cleveland Institute of Music. Jennifer and Scott are married and make their home in Great Falls with their 4-year-old son, Colin, four cats and a dog.

Montana State University-Northern Chancellor's Lecture Series is an annual event designed to stimulate and enhance the intellectual climate of the university and surrounding communities.

For more information, contact Barbara Zuck, co-chair, MSU-N Chancellor's Lecture Series, and Island Range Chapter Board Member, at 265-4175 or by email at [email protected].