Current Principal Trumpet for the Dallas Symphony and former Principal Trumpet for the world famous Canadian Brass, Ryan Anthony, is scheduled to join the Bozeman Symphony presenting Concerto for Hope on October 27th and 28th, 2018. However, former Canadian Brass member and internationally celebrated trumpeter Jens Lindemann will appear in his place.

Ryan Anthony brings a unique aspect to his music-making and performances as he was diagnosed in 2012 with an incurable form of cancer called Multiple Myeloma - a cancer of the blood and bone marrow.  A favorite guest artist of the Bozeman Symphony, audiences have come to know Ryan over the years and his battle with Multiple Myeloma. Thanks to a stem-cell transplant soon after his diagnosis, Ryan has been successful at keeping the cancer at bay. Determined to beat it, Ryan has been on a mission to raise awareness through “Cancer Blows” concerts and establishing the Ryan Anthony Foundation, and telling his story to anyone who will listen. All of this while maintaining an active schedule of performances, clinics, travel, regular treatments, and as a husband and father of two young children.

 
Ryan’s heroic fight has been ongoing as 2018 brought tandem stem cell transplants this September and October as life-saving treatment of his multiple myeloma. In the first transplant, Ryan received his own stem cells and in the second, he received stem cells from a matched donor located through the Be The Match registry. Maestro Matthew Savery, Music Director and Conductor of the Bozeman Symphony shares “so far, he’s made great progress and is home recovering from the procedure. While he is doing very well, he still has some recovering to do, so traveling to Bozeman for our performances was out of the question. Ryan sends his deepest regrets and hopes to return to Bozeman soon.” Maestro Savery also shares “we’ll have a place on our stage for him when he is ready.”

 
Trumpeter Jens Lindemann will join the orchestra on October 27th and 28th. Jens and Ryan go way back, and they are incredibly close friends. Maestro Savery shares: “I had the pleasure of getting to know Jens two years ago when we both appeared on Ryan’s Cancer Blows: The Legends Return concerts with the Dallas Symphony. We had a fantastic time working together and there is no one I would rather have to fill in for Ryan than Jens. In essence, we are replacing one living legend with another, and all of us at the Bozeman Symphony are grateful.”

About the performance, Jens says “we’re doing this concert for Ryan, for music, and for Bozeman. On Ryan’s behalf, we’re going to give Bozeman an amazing performance.”
 
As stated in the program notes about the Concerto for Hope: “Concerto for Hope is completely and entirely dedicated to Ryan. Just three years before the creation of this concerto, Ryan received his diagnosis. At Ryan’s request, this concerto would be about his story: a concerto that would evoke the events that have shaped forever his view on life, the world, and relationships. To quote Ryan:

‘emotionally powerful, beauty and heartache but ending with hope; fun and full of rejoicing. My recent life: hearing the news and crying out ‘why’ and realizing ‘what’s going on?’ Then accepting it and dealing with the reality and possible future. Then surviving and enjoying life.’
 
I therefore essentially set Ryan’s descriptive paragraph to music. The first movement is full of beauty and fun, with a slight undertone of foreboding. This leads directly (without stoppage) into the second movement, where disbelief, pain and sadness are most prevalent. At one point, the soloist almost literally screams ‘why me?’ to the audience, as the orchestra reaches its most climactic point. This is followed by off-stage musicians who carry on seemingly with a joyous life, leaving the soloist temporarily feeling almost indescribably alone. The instrumentation for the off-stage players, and for other key moments in the work, involves violin, cello and French horn (and brass), all of which have played a significant role in Ryan’s family and musical life.

Again, the second movement passes almost seamlessly onto the third; as we move from sadness and despair to hope and a rebirth of the joy of life. The music struggles constantly between uplifted spirited music and music with a certain darkness. This is musically represented by a battle between G and Eb Major. G Major finally triumphs in the end, and the piccolo trumpet of the soloist awards the listener with the undeniable belief that life is to be lived to the fullest, and that nothing can stop the human spirit.” – James Stephenson

Performances will be held Saturday, October 27th at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, October 28th at 2:30 p.m.  Both performances held at Willson Auditorium (404 West Main Street), Downtown Bozeman. Tickets can be purchased online at bozemansymphony.org, at the Bozeman Symphony offices located at 1001 West Oak Street, Suite 110, by phone at (406) 585-9774, or at the door based on availability. Adult tickets range from $27.00-$67.00. Student discounts are available. Please contact the Bozeman Symphony at (406) 585-9774 or info@bozemansymphony.org with questions you have regarding performance, ticket sales, venue, and seating information. This concert season is generously sponsored by David and Risi Ross. Thank you to Eve Art, Andy, and Jackie, in honor of Mike Art, for sponsoring these performances.