Big Sandy, Havre choirs among schools featured in PBS special Tuesday

Choirs from two local high schools are among those featured Tuesday in a statewide broadcast of Montana Public Broadcasting System, with the Big Sandy and Havre High School choirs performing in the “Celebrate America Across Montana” PBS pledge special.

Jan. 20-21, 15 high school and middle school choirs traveled to Bozeman, including the Havre and Big Sandy choirs, to tape performances of songs that shaped or lifted the nation, a press release said, shown Tuesday on Montana PBS and streamed worldwide.

The performances are part of internationally renowned composer and producer Tim Janis’ eighth “Celebrate America Across Montana.” Janis will be in the Montana PBS studio for the broadcast.

Janis, Montana PBS and Montana’s participating schools invited people to listen, watch and “Celebrate America” Tuesday at 7 p.m. on Montana PBS, and people worldwide can livestream the broadcast worldwide on Montana PBS Facebook at the same time.

“As you watch this program you are really witnessing a community coming together,” Janis said in a press release about the program. “Both the station and all the music educators, their students, and a lot of hard work. And I believe that is inspiring and uplifting for everybody.”

Along with the Big Sandy and Havre choirs, choirs from Anaconda, Billings Christian, Choteau, Corvallis, Fairfield, Florence-Carlton, Hamilton, Mount Ellis Academy, Powell County, Power, Red Lodge, Ronan and Sacajawea taped performances Jan. 19-20, with each school selecting the song it would perform.

Havre, under the direction of Danna Stoll, performed “The Storm Is Passing Over, “while the Big Sandy choir, under the direction of T.J. Bond, performed ”Let There Be Peace On Earth.”

A $200 Gift Certificate is offered to the choir that inspires the most new or renewed PBS memberships or pledges to Montana PBS. DVDs and CDs of the broadcast are offered as pledge gifts. All pledges go directly to Montana PBS.

The following week, Janis receives no compensation for producing Celebrate America other than what he calls “the joy that comes from supporting music education in schools.”

To date, more than 45,000 students have performed in Celebrate America, the press release said, with all recording costs donated by Tim Janis’ Music of Hope and Public Television.

Schools provide transportation for their choirs.

Across the nation, some Celebrate America choirs have backed up stars in Tim Janis’ Carnegie Hall benefit concerts for Kate Winslet’s Golden Hat Foundation for Autism, St Jude’s Research Hospital for Children, Sarah McLachlans School of Music for At-Risk Youth & Seniors and more.

Janis’ “Celtic Heart” National PBS Pledge Special, featuring original Celtic Woman Grammy- and Emmy-nominated Violinist Máiréad Nesbitt and vocalist Lynne Hillary with Tim Janis, The Harp Twins and more is airing the next week, Tuesday, March 7, at 7 p.m.

With millions of albums sold, five National Public Television specials and two No. 1

Billboard Charting CDs, Janis has worked with some of the top artists in the music and entertainment business, — from Paul McCartney, Billy Joel, Ray Charles, Sarah McLachlan, Loreena Mckennitt, Hayley Westenra, and Andrea Corr to George Clooney, Kate Winslet, Jane Seymour, James Earl Jones, Sir James Galway and more. A composer, producer and performer, Janis said he fosters a deep belief in creating music that can heal and bring peace on a global level. His music has traveled a long and fascinating journey from New York’s Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center to Africa, China and Eastern Europe.

He has conducted and performed with the American Symphony Orchestra, Czech National Symphony Orchestra, NwaZulu-Natal Philharmonic and Hartford Symphony. He has recorded with Kurt Masur, New York Philharmonic, David Snell, and the London Symphony Orchestra. His 2018 musical film “Buttons” starring Dick Van Dyke and Angela Lansbury with Paul Greene, Roma Downey and more, narrated by Robert Redford and Kate Winslet, was released on DVD and Itunes in November 2019, through Paramount Pictures.

Janis’ annual Carnegie Hall benefit concert is slated for Dec. 4.