Distinctly Montana Magazine

© JAMES WESTWATER The Eternal Struggle © James Westwater "PEOPLE LIKE WESTWATER AND I PREDICATE OUR MISSIONS BY BREAKING THE RULES. THAT'S WHAT MAKES IT FUN. WE LIKE TO MAKE IT NEW ALL OVER AGAIN." GORDON JOHNSON, MUSIC DIRECTOR AND CONDUCTOR OF THE GREAT FALLS SYMPHONY which is where she met her husband, Nicholas Bardon- nay, also a photographer. After two years of apprentice- ship with Westwater, this year Bardonnay officially joined Westwater Arts, making photochoreography something of a family business. "Nicholas has added a youthfulness and vigor to our ap- proach," Westwater says. "He's very talented." Bardonnay spent part of his childhood in Helena, where his grandfather currently lives, and he also has family in Libby. He attended MSU and graduated from Evergreen State College. Bardonnay worked at the American Film Institute and then produced fine art photography on the side, exhibiting in Hong Kong, London, and Medellin, Colombia. "Music and photography are passions of mine, and they influence each other very well—it's a natural fit," he explains. This fall, Bardonnay will perform his first piece of pho- tochoreography back in Montana. "I've already invited my family members from Helena and Libby. I am quite close to my grandfather, and he has never seen what I do, so it will be nice to share this with him." Gordon Johnson, acclaimed music director and conduc- tor of the Great Falls Symphony, has invited Westwater Arts to participate in a very special performance slated for Octo- ber 1, titled Patriots, Citizens, and Soldiers. "We are recogniz- ing the sesquicentennial of the Civil War and in the process we will recognize all citizens who have served in the armed forces since that time," he says. The symphony's performance of American composer Aaron Copland's A Lincoln Portrait will be accompanied by narration from Abraham Lincoln's speeches by Army Lieutenant Colonel Timothy J. Holtan, Commandant, U.S. Army School of Music, and photochoreography that draws from the remarkable and evocative photographs taken during the Civil War and Civil Rights Movement. Westwater sifted through nearly 10,000 images at the Library of Congress before selecting about 330 to be in- cluded in th e piece, which focuses on three main themes: Lincoln, the Civil War, and the ongoing struggle for free- dom, justice, and equality. DISTINCTLY MONTANA | DIGITAL Experience a Westwater concert Go to www.distinctlymontana.com/westwater114 "We've purposefully chosen to open our season with this concert with James Westwater," Johnson says, "be- cause of the powerful, visceral effect of music, words, and images. The audience will be awe-inspired." Johnson and Westwater have collaborated before in Montana, with the Bozeman Symphony, the Great Falls Symphony, and the Glacier Symphony in Whitefish. He's also worked with the Billings Symphony several times, under the direction of Uri Barnea. And for those traditionalists who might be uneasy with the notion of visuals being incorporated into a live orchestral performance, Johnson says, "People like West- water and I predicate our missions by breaking the rules. That's what makes it fun. We like to shake things up and make them new all over again." www.distinctlymontana.com 35

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