Denali Music Festival

 

Denali Music Festival 2012

Spanning the course of several weeks music groups entertained and educated visitors/ community goers through a series of events including the Alaska premiere of the original composition Denali, by composer Stephen Lias based upon his 2011 residency at the park.

Partners

Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival, Denali Arts and Humanities Alliance: Denali National Park and Preserve, Denali Education Center, Denali Borough School District, Kids in Motion, and Alaska Geographic, Alaska Airlines, 49th State Brewing Company, Doyon Aramark/ Joint Venture, Princess, and 229 Parks.

 

2012 Feature Composer: Stephen Lias

In 2011 Stephen Lias spent a week at the East Fork Cabin immersing himself in the wilderness leading to the creation of the original composition "Denali." For several years, Lias has focused on composing pieces for national parks, in anticipation of the 2016 Centennial of the National Park Service. He has written pieces for Mount Rainier, Rocky Mountain, Sequoia, Kings Canyon, and Big Bend. In 2012 Stephen Lias visited other national parks in Alaska as an Artist-in-Residence, including Glacier Bay, Wrangell-St. Elias, and Gates of the Artic.

When writing a musical work based on a national park, I always try to immerse myself in the experiences that the park has to offer and create musical ideas organically from the emotions, activities, and surprises that inevitably come from being in the wild. Denali provided the ideal location in which to pursue this approach. During my residency, I was able to spend time in the amazing mountains, glaciers, rivers, forests, and tundra, and to witness the wildlife and weather that make this such a forbidding environment.

When I sat down to begin composing, it was quite easy to break the experience into different topics such as "flying over snow-capped peaks", "predators", or "iconic vistas". These (among other topics) became the sections of the piece and create (I hope) the impression that the listener is moving through, and interacting with, the varied world of Denali. - Stephen Lias 2011

Denali, Stephen Lias, 2011
As performed by the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival String Orchestra with music director Robert Franz and special guest Caitlan Warbelow

 

Denali Music Festival 2012 Highlights

 

Bluegrass legend Raymond McLain and harmonica virtuoso Mike Stevens perform at the Charles Sheldon Center, 07/13.

 

Community members/ visitors jam with bluegrass legend Raymond McLain and harmonica virtuoso Mike Stevens at the Denali Princess Wilderness Lodge, 07/14.

 

First Tap! 49th State Brewing Company unveils a new arts beer brewed to support the arts community of Denali and raise funds for arts related programs, 07/17.

 

Sweet Plantain plays at the 49th State Brewing Company. The Fairbanks String Orchestra Ensemble plays at the McKinley Chalet Resort, 07/20.

 

Red Shift performs at the Murie Science and Learning Center as part of a youth outreach program.

 

Denali, an original composition by Stephen Lias, premieres at the Denali Visitor Center in Denali National Park and Preserve. The pieces is performed by the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival String Orchestra with music director Robert Franz and special guest Caitlan Warbelow, 7/21.

 

Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival String Orchestra with the Denali - Nenana Boroughs Youth Chamber Choir performs at the Eielson Visitor Center, Denali National Park and Preserve, 7/22.

 

Composition and the National Parks Field Course: Soundscapes of Denali

Composing in the Wilderness
Nine composers from around the globe spent several days at a Denal field camp with Stephen Lias and park researcher Davyd Betchykal exploring the wilderness and learning about the soundscapes of Denali. The original compositions premiered at the Davis Concert Hall in Fairbanks, Alaska and performed by the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival orchestra.

Listen to the original compositions