Sunday, April 10, 1:00-3:00pm
Landmark Center, Saint Paul, MN
Conducted by Lon Hendricks

Army Frolic	​George Hahn 1922	This early 20th-century patriotic march has many traits common to the tunes from the mandolin-orchestra heyday — a major-key, 6/8 time march in three parts, the last having a key change and a rousing “dog fight.” Think John Philip Sousa, but with string for brass.
Red Lodge Reel	Peter Ostroushko 2003	​Peter Ostroushko wrote this tune for Garrison Keillor’s Prairie Home Companion radio show, where he performed mandolin regularly and served as the musical director for some time.
Dakota Hymn and Dance	Peter Ostroushko 1995	You’ll hear many of the orchestra sections pass around the melody beginning with “Pioneer Waltz” and running into “Pig’s Eye Reel,” a nod to the city of Saint Paul.
Waltz for Peter Ostroushko*​	Sherry Ladig ​2021	Each year, Sherry composes a tune for the Minnesota Mandolin Orchestra. This one is a tribute to mandolinist Peter Ostroushko, friend of Sherry’s, teacher to many players in our orchestra, and someone we lost in 2021.
Red Wing	F.A. Mills 1907	Lon arranged this 1907 hit to highlight each section of our mandolin orchestra. The melody of the verse comes from Schumann’s “The Happy Farmer, Returning from Work” from 1848, known to all Suzuki students (and their patient families).
Vous et Moi	Robert Bosmans 1941	Bosmans dedicated this Quintette du Hot-Club Belgique tune to his violinist bandmate Hans Berry, who fled Germany, but was captured during the occupation of Belgium. You’re probably more familiar with the Quintette du Hot Club de France’s performance of the tune, featuring Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli.
And Your Bird Can Sing	Lennon & McCartney ​1966	This is a deep track - it was left off the North American release of Revolver, appearing instead on Yesterday and Today, so you’re forgiven if it’s not entirely familiar to you. It wouldn’t be a Beatles song without various conflicting fan interpretations, including jabs at Frank Sinatra and Mick Jagger.
​Suite Marinaresca	Amedeo Amadei 1866-1935	Amadei (1866-1935) depicts a sea voyage in four breaths, drawing us in with “La Serenata delle Naiadi” (The Naiads’ Serenade), continuing the travels with “La Danza delle Ondine” (The Ondines’ Dance), lulling us with “Il Canto delle Sirene” (The Sirens’ Song), culminating in the crashing waves of “La Fuga dei Tritoni” (The Tritons’ Fugue).

* denotes public premiere

​Intermission from approx. 1:50-2:00pm

Evolution Rag	Thomas Allen ​1912	This arrangement of a tin-pan alley ragtime tune appeared in the April 1913 edition of The Cadenza, which you can view online in full context at Digital Guitar Archive. Thomas Allen’s work lives on in the covers of Pete Seeger and Bruce Springsteen.
Victoria Elizabeth Waltz	Peter Ostroushko 1986	This tune appears on Peter Ostroushko Presents the Mando Boys. Ostroushko originally dubbed the group The Lake Wobegon Municipal Mandolin Orchestra, but the Prairie Home Companion radio crew gave up on the mouthful and pinned the name Mando Boys on the fez-wearing cheese-curd-eating quartet.
Eine Kleine Nachtmusik I	Mozart ​1787	The first movement of this serenade is probably Mozart’s most popular melody both among casual listeners and students of music theory, where the movement serves in many lectures to demonstrate theme development. It is our first foray into Mozart as the MMO.
Trenches of Manchuria	Ilya Shatrov ​1906	Now a standard of Yiddish and Russian folk music, this song was written to commemorate the Russian soldiers lost at the Battle of Mukden in 1905. The loss forced the Russian withdrawal of Manchuria by the much smaller Japanese army. Perhaps darkly, the tune is often dubbed “The Victory Waltz,” referring to the the orchestra playing “The Victory March” while leading their entrapped Russian army to break the Japanese lines to open the path to retreat.
Defiant*	Benjamin Gieseke ​2021	This is Ben’s second composition for the orchestra, following “The Raven.” The title refers to the USS Defiant from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.
Driftless	John Goodin ​2016	The title refers to the region of southeast Minnesota, southwest Wisconsin, and northeast Iowa where John lived. The area is unusually rugged for the Midwest due to the absence of glaciers during the ice age allowing many rivers time to cut deep into bedrock.
Extasis	Astor Piazzolla ​1963	Astor Piazzolla reinvigorated the tango for the jazz world, developing Tango Nuevo in the 1960s, which spurred experimentation among dancers in the 1980s, as well as mandolin orchestras today. This arrangement comes from our own David Ingham in the guitar section.
Veritas Vincit	Johan Kok ​1889-1954	Johan Kok was one of the most prolific Dutch composers of works for mandolin and guitar. His Radio Mandolin Orchestra performed over 150 live broadcasts of his composition through the 1930s.

* denotes public premiere