A sudden quiet blankets the auditorium as the lights dim and the maestro crosses the stage to his podium.
With a quick page flip on his music stand, his arms rise on either side of him as though taking a breath.
The musicians before him position their instruments – their eyes transfixed on his hands.
The audience members behind him hold their breath in anticipation of the first note.
The Helena Symphony Orchestra, celebrating its 70th anniversary this year, is taking pause to reflect on the significance of its musicians, the music played, and the impact it has had.
“A conductor makes no sound,” said Allan R. Scott, music director and conductor of the Helena Symphony. “We are only as impactful on the podium as the people in front of us – the orchestra or chorus – allow us to be. We’re the tour guide through the museum. The art is the composer.”
“Off the podium, as a music director, the same analogy applies,” Scott continued. “We’re only as impactful as the staff, the board, the organization and the community allow us to be.”
For the past 22 years, Maestro Scott has been the beacon guiding the symphony’s musical legacy into a new era.
“This symphony is not about me,” Scott said. “It existed well before I was born and it’s going to exist long after me. I’m just the caretaker of it now.”
Founded in 1955, the Helena Symphony shares roots with the very beginnings of Helena itself.
The Ming Opera House (now the Consistory Shrine Temple) offered classical music performances from the 1880s to the early part of the 20th century, both from traveling troupes and later its own orchestra.
Octavia Haroldson, a local violinist, founded the Helena Little Symphony after she graduated from Helena High in 1938 and would later be the visionary behind the founding of the Helena Symphony in 1955.
Flashforward to 2001, the Helena Symphony found itself in need of a “renaissance” of sorts.
With 13 conductors already under its belt in its first 49 years, the symphony sought a new conductor – someone with the gusto and vision to carry it into the new millennium. An international search launched to find such a conductor.
Nearly 100 candidates, 15 semifinalists, five finalists and almost two years later, the Helena Symphony named Philadelphia conductor Allan R. Scott as its 14th music director and conductor.
With high conductor turnover and an annual budget of only $180,000 – half of which was in debt at the time of his hire – the task before Scott was daunting.
“It’s a big organization; it’s a big ship to steer,” said Scott. “Like with most symphonies it takes a long time to turn a ship, to turn the next direction. It takes a lot of planning.”
But Scott is no stranger to challenging circumstances.
As a child, Scott was told he would likely never walk due to a congenital disorder that caused his feet to be backwards. Because he couldn’t do normal things like run and walk very well, Scott found solace and purpose instead in music.
He took his first piano lesson just days before his fifth birthday and convinced his parents to pay the $4 per lesson if he agreed to diligently practice every day at lunch.
The work ethic and tenacity found in childhood equipped Scott with the drive to help elevate the Helena Symphony to a new level.
“What it is about ultimately is how are we making a difference in the community,” Scott said. “The vision that we redefined a few years ago is that we want to be part of the lives of the community, and we want to bring people together through music – not necessarily to music – but through music.”
“We want music to be the conduit between connecting with others, especially in a divisive world,” continued Scott.
During Scott’s tenure, the symphony has seen significant growth and expanded impacts on all fronts.
The symphony went from being over $63,000 in debt with a $180,000 budget to being financially sound with a $1.3 million budget.
While there were previously 120 season ticket holders in 2003, there are now around 700.
In the early 2000s there was an average audience of 250 people. Today there are consistently 1,500-1,800 audience members at every performance.
The largest single donation used to be $500, but the symphony now receives major gifts ranging from $10,000 to $80,000.
The creation of the Symphony Under the Stars concert, particularly, has spurred widespread impacts. The free concert attracts over 18,000 people annually from across Montana and beyond and generates close to $2 million through economic impact. This past summer alone over 17,000 pounds of food were collected during the event and donated to Helena Food Share.
But it isn’t just improving statistics that keeps Scott motivated. Since day one on the job he has sought to change the community’s very understanding of music and their relationship with it.
“Music is not just entertainment,” Scott said. “We exist to change the lives, to impact the lives, to transform the lives, to inspire the lives, and enrich the lives of our community. That’s why we exist.”
The Helena Symphony hosts a monthly Saturday morning program called “Symphony Kids” featuring a 30-minute performance with narration and actors that introduces children to the world of music and instruments.
“We make sure families have access to music,” said Scott. “It’s a very intimate, simple way of performing but hundreds of families come to this.”
Every December, people crowd into the Cathedral of St. Helena for the annual Christmas in the Cathedral concert for a time-honored holiday tradition.
Annually, over $30,000 in tickets are given away to people who have taken a music class or lesson of any kind.
“If they’re studying piano and they’re 50 years old, they can come to almost any performance they want for free,” said Scott.
“It’s about being part of people’s culture and experiencing more than just entertainment,” said Scott. “When we’re making a financial impact in this community, when we’re making a cultural impact, a social impact, an educational impact, we are changing the lives of our community.”
On Oct. 26 at 7:30 p.m. Scott and the rest of Helena Symphony continue delivering community impact through music at their second concert of the season.
The symphony performs Ravel’s romantic drama “Daphnis & Chloe” along with “La Valse,” a waltz-gone-wild. Opening the concert is Helena Symphony’s concertmaster, Stephen Cepeda, performing Dmitri Shostakovich’s virtuosic “Violin Concerto No.1 in A Minor.”
If you go …
What: HSO Concertmaster Stephen Cepeda plays Shostakovich’s “Violin Concerto No. 1 in A Minor” followed by the HSO performing Ravel’s “Daphnis & Chloe” and “La Valse.”
When: Saturday, Oct. 26, at 7:30 p.m.
Where: Helena Civic Center, 340 Neill Ave.
Cost: Ticket prices range from $22-$71. Tickets can be purchased online at helenasymphony.org by phone at 406-442-1860.
Contact: 406-442-1860
Info: helenasymphony.org
“It’s an amazing piece,” said Cepeda, who has served as concertmaster for 19 years. “The structure of it is pretty unique. It consists of a mixture of baroque/classical form players as well as romantic character pieces.”
“It’s a wild violin piece; it’s super fun,” said Cepeda.
Shostakovich composed the concerto during a turbulent time in Soviet history between 1947-1948. The composer – both praised and condemned by Soviet authorities – kept the concerto unpublished until two years after Stalin’s death in 1953.
While in its 70th season, the Helena Symphony is only just getting started.
“Having beautiful cultural things like a symphony has to improve the overall cultural landscape of a place,” said Cepeda. “It’s so amazing that there’s an orchestra with this budget and quality in a town of this size.”
“The goal is to make sure that Helena continues to have a symphony that makes a massive impact in this community in all the different categories we have,” said Scott.
“We have a lot more to do … we have not arrived,” he said. “We are still working on earning the support of the community.”
Lacey Middlestead is a Carroll College graduate and has been freelance writing for the past 14 years for the Independent Record, various regional publications, and local marketing agencies. Contact her at laceymiddlestead.com.