Bozeman Magazine

Baroque Music Montana presents Bozeman Symphony concertmaster Carrie Krause and beloved Bozemanite Jesse MacDonald, recent graduate of the prestigious Manhattan School of Music, in "The Unanswerable Questions," an ambitious undertaking presenting the complete Solo Violin Sonatas and Partitas by J.S. Bach during a three day festival in April. The Monday April 17th program will explore the compositional context and performance process of these monumental works in an intimate, inviting setting at 31 Hitching Post Rd. The complete works will be presented April 18th and April 20th at 7:30 at St. James, with performances by both musicians. Violinist Carrie Krause’s “elegant, sparkling performance brought audience cheers” -Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Raised in Fairbanks, Alaska, Carrie Krause performs as baroque violinist with ensembles across the country and on numerous international series. Recently, Carrie was guest artistic director and concerto soloist with Seattle Baroque in a performance of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons and performed at the BBC Proms with Apollos’ Fire. A recent graduate of the Juilliard School, Carrie serves as concertmaster of the Bozeman Symphony, and in principal positions with Seattle Baroque, Spire in Kansas City, and Apollo's Fire in Cleveland. Jesse MacDonald performs with the Luminaria String Quartet, based in NYC. Jesse held principal positions with Boston Civic Symphony, Montana All-State Orchestra, Beverly Hills Chamber Orchestra, Interlochen Symphony Orchestra, Bozeman Symphony Orchestra, and the Intermountain Opera Association. He has also been a section player for the Boston String Players, Cambridge Philharmonic Orchestra, Symphony Nova, Boston Philharmonic, Symphony New Hampshire, and the Granite State Symphony Orchestra. Jesse won the MASO Concerto Competition, in both Junior and Senior Divisions and the Umpqua Young Artist Competition, resulting in solo performances with the Great Falls, Glacier, Bozeman, and Umpqua Chamber Symphonies. He has also been a finalist or winner of the Musicfest Northwest Competition, Minnesota Symphonia Competition, Couer d’Alene Concerto Competition, and the MTNA Regional Competition. He was also the lead fiddle player for the Broken String Band, a contra dance and swing band for 10 years.