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Entertainment Briefs - April 12

Music General attends talent competition Music General Studio and Company Lines attended their first competition of the 2018 season March 2-4 at Celebration Talent Competition in Burnsville. Music General was among several studios from around the...

Dancers in Music General Studio and Company Lines attended their first competition of the 2018 season March 2-4 at Celebration Talent Competition in Burnsville. Music General entered 25 routines.Submitted
Teen and Senior Company Dancers in Music General Studio and Company Lines attended their first competition of the 2018 season March 2-4 at Celebration Talent Competition in Burnsville. Submitted

Music General attends talent competition

Music General Studio and Company Lines attended their first competition of the 2018

season March 2-4 at Celebration Talent Competition in Burnsville. Music General was among several studios from around the state that attended the event, entering 25 routines in jazz, tap, contemporary and lyrical. Dancers in Mini, Junior and Teen/Senior Companies took home an array of awards for their efforts. Out of a possible 300 points, Music General finished the weekend with one Gold Award with 258-272 points; nine High Gold Awards with 273-287 points; nine Platinum Awards with 288-293 points; and six Diamond Awards with 294-300 points.

Music General had nine entries place in the Top Five Overall High Scores, including five first place wins. Teen-Senior Company Line's tap routine "Devil Went Down to Georgia" was the highest scoring group routine of the weekend, and Teen Company dancer Isabella Bennett was Top Junior Soloist, Dancer of the Year Finalist, First Overall for Junior solos and the recipient of the Super Star Award for all elite dancers age 12 and under.

Results:

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• Mini Company: Cool Kitty, Gold, Best Costume; ABC Boogie: High Gold, first overall

• Junior Company: Grown, High Gold, Performance Award; Kool Kat In Town, High Gold, Showstopper Award; Faith, Platinum, second overall, Judges Choice Award; Blame It On the Boogie, High Gold, seventh overall, Performance Award.

• Teen/Senior Company: The Way You Make Me Feel, Platinum; Devil Went Down to Georgia, Diamond, first overall; Poison, High Gold; Good to Be Alive, Platinum, first overall; Double Exposure, Platinum, fourth overall; Ordinary People, Platinum; Call Me, Diamond, first overall; and Explosive, Diamond, second overall.

• Soloists: Brianna Alderson, "I'm Getting At Being Bad," High Gold; Jorja Kobliska, "Deed I Do," High Gold; Megan Miller, "Mercy," High Gold; "Waterfalls," Platinum; Libby Borash, "Little Sparrow," Platinum; "Do You Wanna Dance," Diamond, third overall; Savanna Oberfeld, "Straight Up," Platinum; "Landslide," Diamond, fourth overall; Nariah Fett, "I Like the Way You Move," Platinum; Isabella Bennett, "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree," Diamond, first overall, Dancer of the Year Finalist and Super Star Award.

Legacy Chorle to present April concert

The Legacy Chorale will perform a free, family-friendly concert at 3:30 p.m. April 29 at Tornstrom Auditorium in Brainerd.

The theme of the concert, "All Things Bright and Beautiful," will serenade the audience with songs depicting the loveliness of nature, light, love and life.

"It's a concert of happiness," Sarah Aamot, the Legacy Chorale's founder and

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artistic director, stated in a news release. "We want everyone to be able to enjoy live performances of beautiful music. People of all ages love our concerts. We've been performing in Brainerd for 15 years and now we want to help families and people on a tight budget be part of an extraordinary concert experience."

"Music is good for us in so many way," Aamot stated. "Kids need music in their lives-we all need music."

Repertoire for "All Things Bright and Beautiful" includes a variety of musical styles, forms and textures. There's a jazz arrangement of Stevie Wonder's "You Are the Sunshine of My Life," and Broadway favorites "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'" and "Summertime." African-American Spirituals "De Animals a-Comin'" and the rousing, revival-style "God Put a Rainbow in the Sky," made famous by Mahalia Jackson. An instrumental ensemble of area musicians, complete with strings, woodwinds, brass and rhythm section, will accompany the chorale on several pieces.

"People who hear about this concert from their friends after it's over, will be disappointed they missed it," Aamot stated. "After this long winter, we all need a dose of 'Bright and Beautiful.' And music is good for us in so many way."

A study funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development showed that youth who participate in the arts have positive cognitive, behavioral and social development outcomes.

"Engagement in musical activities reduces stress, makes life more meaningful and builds

unity in families and communities," Tracy Rittmueller, who is working with area organizations and businesses to help fund free concerts in Brainerd, stated. "That's why Brainerd Lakes Area Community Foundation and Essentia Health are sponsoring this concert and encouraging people to attend. They know that supporting live music events helps make residents healthier and happier, and can encourage more young people to sing."

"Singers don't need to buy or rent their instrument," Aamot stated. "That makes choir one of the least expensive ways of providing music education for young people. We're hoping that after young people come to our concerts, more will join school and church choirs."

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This concert is made possible in part by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the

Five Wings Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the Arts and Cultural

Heritage Fund.

The Legacy Chorale of Greater Minnesota​ has graced area stages since 2002. They are a group of ordinary people presenting extraordinary performances, with a mission to ensure the legacy of excellence in choral music in the greater Minnesota area, while enriching, inspiring and renewing the communities in which they live. Comprised of 50-70 vocalists at any time of all ages, they perform in many communities throughout central and greater Minnesota. To learn more visit legacychorale.org, or call 218-270-8212.

Environment is focus of gallery exhibit

AITKIN-"Reclaim, Repurpose, Reimagine," a new exhibit at Ripple River Gallery near Bay Lake, will be on display through April 29 and focuses on the environmental impact of non-degradable materials, most notably plastics. A reception will be 2-5 p.m. April 21.

Plastic pollution-including microfiber pollution-is increasing at alarming levels, threatening rivers, lakes and oceans, food supply and health, it stated in a news release.

"The statistics are startling," the release stated. "Humans have produced enough plastic to cover Argentina, the eighth-largest country in the world, 10 inches deep. Of the 8.3 billion tons of already-produced plastic, 6.3 billion tons have already become trash. Plastic production, which has doubled every 15 years, outpaces every other kind of man-made material, and half of it becomes trash in less than a year."

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Exhibit artists were asked to consider plastic and its alternatives, such as can a pottery jar take the place of a plastic container; can discarded materials be woven, stitched or incorporated into new items; or can the pristine landscape of our imaginations find balance with the reality of environmental degradation.

Felt artist Kristen Anderson of Bigfork was inspired by the discovery that three organisms have mutated to digest plastic.

"Working in felt allows me to explore my curiosity with the natural world," she stated.

Judith Bergerson of Sartell created mixed media collages from litter and discarded materials found in the street and elsewhere. Karin Kraemer of Duluth used clay and created a signature angler fish design that speaks to the adaptation of the fish to its environment, while contemplating the future health of our oceans, the news release stated. Scientists estimate that by the year 2050 there will be more plastic in the oceans than fish.

Carolyn Olson of Duluth was thinking about the proliferation of microfibers in the waterways, and ultimately in the food and bodies, when she painted "Reading Near the St. Louis River."

Ripple River Gallery is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday; and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays.

For more information call 218-678-2575 or email ripplerivergallery@gmail.com .

St. Francis presents string spring concert

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LITTLE FALLS-St. Francis Music Center presents a spring concert titled Friday Night at the Movies, featuring the St. Francis String Orchestras at 7 p.m. April 20 in the Sacred Heart Chapel, St. Francis Convent, in Little Falls.

The St. Francis Preparatory Orchestra will perform with the theme from Star Wars, "Ding-Dong, the Witch is Dead" from "The Wizard of Oz" and "Hedwig's Theme" from the Harry Potter series.

The concert orchestra will present a variety of movie music from the melody known as "Feather Theme" from "Forrest Gump" to the rousing music of "Star Trek" and "The Incredibles." They will also present a medley of tunes from "Lion King," which will showcase a lot of percussion instruments.

A special break in the action will be Hannah Miller as a piano soloist accompanied by the Chamber Orchestra on Muzio Clementi's "Sonatina in G."

The St. Francis string concerts are a community favorite and all are welcome to attend the free concert. Nearly 50 student and adult string players from Little Falls and surrounding communities participate in the orchestras on a weekly basis. All orchestras are conducted by Bobbi French, well known in the central Minnesota music community not only as a string instructor at St. Francis Music Center, but also as a solo violinist and member of the Heartland Symphony Orchestra.

The String Orchestras are supported by the Minnesota State Arts Board, US Bank, Pine Country Bank, private donations and the Franciscan Sisters of Little Falls. For more

information, call the Music Center at 320-632-0637.

CLC instructor lead author in MISA book

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Thaddeus McCamant, specialty crops educator at Central Lakes College, was the lead author for a book for the Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture. The book is titled "Perennial Fruit: New, Unusual, and Unique Crops for Northern Climates."

Contributing author was Sadie Schroeder, then affiliated with Green Lands Blue Waters at the University of Minnesota.

The book provides commercial fruit growers and home gardeners in Minnesota with the current state of knowledge on lesser-known fruits such as aronia, currants, gooseberries, saskatoon, chokecherries, honeyberries, elderberries and more, a news release stated. These are "emerging crops"-fruit that have little or no history of breeding and production research in the United States, but that have potential to become valuable commercial crops.

Most of Minnesota lies within the USDA hardiness zones 3 and 4. Cold winters kill or harm fruit trees and branches, while short growing seasons prevent certain crops from properly maturing. In spite of these shortcomings, a surprising diversity of new and unusual perennial fruit crops can grow here, it stated. A major driving force behind the growth in new crops is the recently discovered and rediscovered health benefit of berries and other fruit.

The current base of knowledge for these emerging crops is extremely small compared to crops like apples or strawberries. Most of what we know about emerging crops comes from people who experiment in their own yards or farms. Innovative growers are constantly discovering new varieties or developing new ways of growing emerging crops.

The economic potential for these crops will increase as innovative farmers, food entrepreneurs, and researchers discover or re-learn better ways to plant, manage, harvest, process and market these crops. Investment in an emerging fruit crop could pay good dividends down the road.

McCamant repeatedly invites readers to experiment with species and varieties, to discover what works in their own situation and to engage in selection, breeding and propagation of well-adapted and productive plants. He also provides ample advice about potential pitfalls of the various crops. This book will provide intrepid would-be fruit farmers with the knowledge base to enable their exploration of the potential of emerging fruit crops.

"Perennial Fruit" is available online on the MISA website https://www.misa.umn.edu/publications/perennialfruit .

CRCB looks for musicians

The Cuyuna Range Community Band is seeking musicians to join for the upcoming 2018 summer season. The Cuyuna Range Concert Band is a volunteer concert band which performs at area community celebrations and venues throughout the summer months.

Band membership is open to musicians 17 years of age and older. Rehearsals are held 7-8:30 p.m. weekly beginning April 17 at the Aitkin Growth Center.

For more information contact Rich Peterson at 320-630-0149 or Dick Gunderson at 218-251-0280 or email rich@pioneermach.com .

Minnesota Poets to Read in Wadena

WADENA-The original work of 16 Minnesota poets will be read at noon April 19 at the Wadena County Historical Museum's "Minnesota Voices" program, as part of National Poetry Month. The poets selected include Marge Barrett, Eric Bervig, Ruth Boldan, Sue Bruns, Barry Carter, Samuel Cole, Neil Dyer, Kendra Gilsdorf, Audrae Gruber, Joyce C. Krueger, Melissa Kugler, Julie Martin, Susan McMillan, Lauren Nickisch, LaVonne Selleck and Jan Smith. If the poet is unable to attend, the poem will be read by a local writer. The public is invited to attend this free event. The space has limited seating. Reservations are recommended.

Minnesota Voices is a free program featuring Minnesota writers and their work. It is held the third Thursday of each month from noon to 1 p.m.

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