NORTH NEWTON, KAN. – Crossing genres and continents, Montréal Guitare Trio will bring their musical excellence and winning stage presence to Bethel College for the next Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts series event.
Montréal Guitare Trio, or MG3, will perform March 4 at 7:30 p.m. in Krehbiel Auditorium in Luyken Fine Arts Center on the Bethel campus.
Described by the CBC as the “hottest” guitar ensemble in Canada, MG3 has quickly established itself as “an interactive force in various musical forms.” For more than 18 years, MG3’s virtuosity, rigor, creativity and stage presence have been winning over audiences around the world.
The trio, composed of guitarists Marc Morin, Glenn Lévesque and Sébastien Dufour, has given hundreds of concerts in some of the most prestigious venues across North America, Europe, New Zealand and Australia, including the legendary Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Rundetårnet in Copenhagen and the BB King Blues Club in New York City.
The trio has collaborated and shared the stage with world-renowned ensembles and artists, such as the Orchestre symphonique de Québec, the French-Canadian cellist Jorane and the guitarist Solorazaf (French-born of parents from Madagascar).
Possibly MG3’s most memorable collaboration to date was with the California Guitar Trio in a concert that included some of the greatest rock classics from The Beatles, Radiohead and David Bowie, a few “spaghetti Western” themes by Ennio Morricone, and original compositions. Starting in the fall of 2010, the sextet of MG3 + CGT toured across Canada and the United States, performing in more than 100 cities.
Winner of the 2011 Opus Award for Concert of the Year in the Jazz & World Music category, MG3 has released six albums, including Der Prinz on the Analekta label, which earned a nomination at ADISQ 2014 for Instrumental Album of the Year.
This January, the trio launched its seventh album, Danzas, with a concert at the Théâtre Outremont in Montreal. Danzas pays tribute to the great composers of Spanish music, including Paco de Lucia and Manuel de Falla.
“The Montreal Trio’s guitars know no limits,” said France’s La Montagne. “They journey along with brio from jazz to classical music, from India to Canada.” Bill Rankin of the Edmonton Journal added, “They delivered loads of infectious good humour and some solid ensemble playing that skirted the four corners of the musical world.”
Reserved-seating and general-admission tickets for Montréal Guitare Trio’s March 4 performance are available at hesstonbethel.org or by calling 620-327-8158. Single tickets are for sale at Bethel College’s Thresher Shop in Schultz Student Center and in the Hesston College bookstore during regular business hours. Prices range from $20 to $17, with discounts available for students and senior citizens.
The 2016–17 HBPA season wraps up April 20 with Sybarite5, a string quintet, in Hesston Mennonite Church.
The Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts series is funded in part by the Hesston Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, the City of North Newton, Excel Industries and Hustler Turf Equipment (Hesston), the Hesston Community Foundation, the North Newton Community Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and area businesses and patrons.