A Taste of Jazz set for Saturday at Boys & Girls Club

Havre High School's Taste of Jazz event has been scheduled for Saturday, April 30, from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Boys & Girls Club of the Hi-Line and will feature music, food and auctions to raise money for music scholarships and operations for Havre High's music education operations.

Havre High School Band Director Cullen Hinkle said the event, which has been going since the '90s, supports the school booster group Friends of Music and raised more money than expected last year despite the pandemic forcing the event to operate with some restrictions.

Hinkle said they were able to use the extra money to pay for some of the bands' general operating expenses, which tend to run high due to all their equipment, maintenance and transportation, expenses that will only increase with inflation.

"We're hoping to raise a little bit more than we did last year to help with that financial burden," he said. "I know that, with the band, for our trips the cost is anywhere from $20,000 to $25,000 a year."

He said Friends of Music was set back by the pandemic after not being able to have the event at all in 2020, but they were still able to fund their scholarships through a certificate of deposit they made in case of emergencies.

"It was for a rainy day, and it was like, 'Well, here's the rainy day,'" he said.

Hinkle said the event won't have any pandemic-related restrictions this year, but will still be quite different from years past.

He said the event is typically held in the Havre High School Gym, but this year will be at the Boys & Girls Club, which he said provides a fancier-looking space which fits this year's Great Gatsby theme.

He said the acoustics in the club are also much better than their typical venue which made it difficult for choir students especially to project their voices.

Hinkle said the food will also be a bit different with appetizers, mock-tails and desserts instead of the typical pie and coffee the event usually serves.

He said they may start trying to do a new theme each year, but it looks like they're going to stick with charging mostly by table considering how successful it was last year.

The students of the choir groups the Hi-Liters and Belles Voix are eager to perform and show off in a new venue what they've been working on, he said, but the students of the Jazz Band are especially excited, as they don't find themselves in the spotlight as often as other music groups at the school.

"Jazz Band in particular is not usually a focal point," Hinkle said. "They're usually an extra at concert, so they're excited to be one of the centerpieces."

The event will also feature a silent auction with items donated from local businesses like Havre Chiropractic Clinic, Koefod Agency and Western Trailers as well as a few items that will be auctioned off live.

The winner of this year's scholarships will also be announced, he said.

People can visit https://hpseducationfoundation.com/programs/fom to buy tickets.