[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6138610,"mediaKeyId","5582107-ab1863231d9e7d88c04a815e30a7e7ac","parentId",5582107,"title","Organizers thank sponsors and volunteers and urge public support to sustain festival","audioSeconds",5457,"startMs",131000,"endMs",5588000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5582107-ab1863231d9e7d88c04a815e30a7e7ac&start=131&end=5588","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5582107-ab1863231d9e7d88c04a815e30a7e7ac/thumbnail_131000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6138610/Missoula/Missoula-County/Montana/Organizers-thank-sponsors-and-volunteers-and-urge-public-support-to-sustain-festival","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6138610-b8c415129e61b75d3cd4c8b3ee092642/orig.mp4?Expires=1773576335&Signature=inWsq8kYWV-FaCVqyCaKhPL0SI~rG~TQpfGruOTgXsE856OkJ4UTu8VEk9ZJ6juH7EYwIwjY485H9vPRRFtu6Qigh6FZuJb0t49nxntWxl31P4ldNb1FZAzNjHPP7ElHSpbQnZgxxVjX3QtjwfDGQYJ1Dndhfeb~zQeA5pwJ72pGUAGedAlutoETefe5w97mJ8WQ7ooSvotGnvOTu7NBxEJxWuGt40JCmSozgoL-ACoaP2HKgV5YFFjxM~sMvkbWoPihURmhm3dURywV1sw9s2KU~A3rwxA8EJo~GJbyEwbpu-6mqZtDJcDZQDjygl2XXPgaYEl5YLFgouXyzxdIAw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Missoula, MT","date","2025-08-11T18:56:05Z","article","Festival emcee Michael Marcelic and board members used the finale to acknowledge major sponsors, host families and volunteers whose support organizers said made the Montana International Choral Festival possible.

Marcelic named the festival’s major sponsors: the City of Missoula, the Montana Arts Council, the Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, NBC Montana and Byron Brewing. He also thanked the University of Montana and Adams Center staff, host families who sheltered visiting choirs for nearly a week, and hundreds of volunteers; organizers described the festival as a volunteer-run organization with a working board.

In a brief housekeeping announcement, Marcelic asked audience members to complete an on-site survey and a post-festival survey, saying responses help when organizers apply for grants. During closing remarks, guest conductor Dr. Anton Armstrong urged public support for public broadcasting, saying, “Please be raise holy hell with your folks, but then get your pockets out because if it's not gonna come from then it has to come from us.” Organizers did not present specific fundraising targets or a formal campaign at the finale.

Festival leadership recognized artistic director David Heidel, executive director Rita Pastore and board president Saxon Holbrook (whose message was read by Vice President Stephen Kalm); Holbrook’s message said he was hospitalized and thanked volunteers and donors for their work on the festival.

Organizers noted the festival’s reliance on sponsors, volunteers and community hospitality but did not announce new funding commitments at the event.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Montana International Choral Festival 2025 - Parade of Nations Finale Concert July 20, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","Festival emcees and organizers publicly thanked financial sponsors, host families and volunteers, asked audience members to complete surveys to aid grant applications, and relayed an appeal for public support of public broadcasting.","taxTitle","Missoula, Missoula County, Montana","taxId",4050,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6138615,"Festival finale centers on 'Voices of Peace'; mass choir led by Dr. Anton Armstrong",150,4147000,4297000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5582107-ab1863231d9e7d88c04a815e30a7e7ac&start=4147&end=4297","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5582107-ab1863231d9e7d88c04a815e30a7e7ac/thumbnail_4147000.jpg","/articles/6138615/Missoula/Missoula-County/Montana/Festival-finale-centers-on-Voices-of-Peace-mass-choir-led-by-Dr-Anton-Armstrong","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6138615-ab35bd6a55f743b5b0cdd7a9482a7830/orig.mp4?Expires=1773576335&Signature=oP5Sw5cSZzpyT9gHI6W8kWr~GJoc153JchLbp7gZ18C4bBAs5g5Qsw39D7e4eG0MRrvWO10mg0Rsw-F9UCYCvxQ-dOQyHMF~dP9iSMlzLlib-1mBGWuPwdUFB-sAy8hGBSoELRee4dDQ6RnqW0TOiA8hMcO0Q6xXls2uYnuGp8Dr2yo3rJRcxEznRgzajeb4MhJpSj5Xss5wA8yep8gLTMEKG1efA0J8ldJ9fl6HaWw9Jp-RQMBaB6mlGWleQ-kimKYNONwfyekazfMjYHhYLsQ5kMgIC3tlHfwdmO2Aay~-Z8eVQd2lapFCeMGggPwia7iqjeyEkXiKMxI3~NtBWg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","At the thirteenth Montana International Choral Festival finale in Missoula, visiting choirs and conductors emphasized the festival theme “Voices of Peace,” culminating in a mass-choir performance conducted by Dr. Anton Armstrong.

Dr. Anton Armstrong, introduced to lead the combined festival chorus, framed the closing repertoire as a response to global violence and human suffering. He referenced past and present conflicts, saying, “It may have been Bosnia 25 years ago, but now it's Gaza. Now it's Ukraine.” He asked the audience to join the singers and shared text excerpts that invoked prayer for children and a plea for peace.

Jeffrey Ames, identified in remarks as director of core electives at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, was credited during the program for a piece he wrote more than 20 years ago addressing violence in Bosnia and Sudan; Armstrong noted its continued relevance. The finale included performances by international and U.S. choirs that chose songs reflecting the theme; the program invited the audience to participate in a canon and concluded with a mass rendering of “Auld Lang Syne.”

Organizers described the festival as noncompetitive and rooted in hospitality; festival choirs and local ensembles joined for the mass-choir numbers. The program noted participating groups including Vox Nova (Columbia, Missouri), Franciscan Choir Kampala (Uganda), the Tartu Student Mixed Choir (Estonia), University of Montana Chamber Chorale, and Landes Jugendkor Saar (Saarbrücken, Germany).","Conductors and visiting choirs at the Montana International Choral Festival finale highlighted a peace theme; Dr. Anton Armstrong conducted the festival mass choir and tied musical selections to contemporary conflicts and humanitarian concerns.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6138619,"Missoula Mendelssohn Club honored as group calls 2025 its final year",600,67000,667000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5582107-ab1863231d9e7d88c04a815e30a7e7ac&start=67&end=667","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5582107-ab1863231d9e7d88c04a815e30a7e7ac/thumbnail_67000.jpg","/articles/6138619/Missoula/Missoula-County/Montana/Missoula-Mendelssohn-Club-honored-as-group-calls-2025-its-final-year","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6138619-691c166bad0a3b8d16c1e4b53256b9a3/orig.mp4?Expires=1773576335&Signature=PKOfNfv238NPZp0DoFW~vXnLoTBGuV3Clo9VaPoyz4z5J77psusUqStQ4aWIYBfwUJm98J-jWqT5jnEI9kPX0hZVDawzsEyVithZrqEWlGM4P-0saNute5Hiz9OCb31l8~CFPzkqFVtPwHsnFdJRfNYiJFhAb~KdTwcJyF~XqhCRHJZld8sJM7irmZJ4Nk4Dr8EtxQHWRUQlzavW7xNl0rfZT-ktYrjDeySYglOQdpHXOWPB9ltPpfYHdHl9uyN3XCfr4iitaZw8Y66cBtyrzvWX7X7rrPUXcY4JC8jZmP2X3DnOpLX-shJN-dKsaZPchHva710QiPbiNDDX7noj2g__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","At the Montana International Choral Festival finale, emcee Michael Marcelic of Montana Public Radio announced that the Missoula Mendelssohn Club — the men’s community chorus that helped found the festival in 1987 — has decided that 2025 will be its final year of existence as a musical organization.

The announcement came as the festival celebrated its founders during the closing concert. Marcelic said the festival and the Missoula community owe the group “our deepest thanks” for long-term sponsorship and support.

The Missoula Mendelssohn Club helped establish the festival in 1987; festival organizers noted the event later shifted from a triennial schedule to a biennial rhythm. At the finale Marcelic tied the club’s contribution to the festival’s identity, saying the gathering was built on “friendship and a shared love of music.”

Organizers did not announce a formal succession plan, a final concert by the Mendelssohn Club, or any follow-up actions at the event. The festival continued its scheduled program after the recognition.","At the Montana International Choral Festival finale in Missoula, organizers and emcees recognized the Missoula Mendelssohn Club’s decades of support and said the group has chosen 2025 as its final year of existence.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Organizers thank sponsors and volunteers and urge public support to sustain festival

Festival finale centers on 'Voices of Peace'; mass choir led by Dr. Anton Armstrong

Missoula Mendelssohn Club honored as group calls 2025 its final year