Events

Classic Series

Revolutionary Voices

Saturday
Feb 21, 2026

7:30 pm

Alberta Bair Theater

2801 3rd Ave N

$20-77

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Michelle Merrill, guest conductor

Alessio Bax, piano

Jared Miller
Luster

Ludwig van Beethoven
Piano Concerto No. 3

Dmitri Shostakovich
Symphony No. 5

Against a backdrop of history, composers became revolutionaries, telling stories of heartache and triumph through the ages. Acclaimed soloist Alessio Bax, who is said to be “among the most remarkable young pianists,” joins the Symphony to perform Beethoven’s ornate and challenging Piano Concerto No. 3. The concert, led by guest conductor Michelle Merrill, concludes with Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 5, a dramatic take on his desperate search for hope amid oppression. It’s a revolutionary concert from start to finish!

Call 406-256-6052 to order tickets or 406-252-3610 for more information.

What's cool about the concert?

Dimitri Shostakovich was composing music during a trying time in Russian history. With Stalin ruling the country, Soviet citizens had to watch what they said, wrote, painted, or composed for fear of being arrested. Shostakovich's 5th symphony is a reflection of that censorship, it was written after a review was published in the Communist Party newspaper Pravda condemning his opera Lady Macbeth 2 years after it's premier. Shostakovich was in the middle of rehearsals for his Symphony No. 4 and scrapped it in order to write the Symphony No. 5 and try to redeem himself in the eyes of the government, while still staying true to his art.
Although written to appease the government, there is plenty of rebellious undertones throughout the piece. Outwardly the piece is filled with the spirit of celebration and optimism, but underneath the music breaks off and retracts, ending nowhere, suggesting an emotional struggle. His subtle rebellion is most evident in the final movement where it concludes in a militaristic-march like movement, which was popular for the time but often involved a brisk tempo where as his is slow and reminisce of the opera Boris Godunov, in which crowds are forced to praise the Tsar.
Later it was reveled that Shostakovich's ending is also a musical quotation from the setting of a poem ("Rebirth") by Alexander Pushkin which Shostakovich has composed a few months before, but had not published yet. The poem's themes revolve around the struggle between a genius and mediocrity in art and ends with the artist triumphant over his persecutors. Since this hadn't been published yet, it is inferred that Shostakovich made this reference for himself, and for those who would listen in the future. And while this piece was received well by both the public and the government at it's initial premier, after the release of the poem the true undertones of the piece were reveled and Shostakovich was again denounced by Stalin's regime.

Get to know each piece

How long is the Concert?

When do I clap?

Whenever you want! Seriously, the tradition of clapping only at the end of pieces was only for a short time in the history of music. Typically, people like to clap after a great solo in a jazz tune, an impressive dance move, or after a great movement (section) in a symphony. If you really like a piece, clap at the end of the movement and yell "encore" if you want to hear more. (We love playing encores!)

What are ticket prices?

Reserved Seating:

Tier 1 ticket - $77
Tier 2 ticket - $70
Tier 3 ticket - $61
Tier 4 ticket $45

Under 30/Student:

Tier 2 ticket - $39
Tier 3 ticket - $34
Tier 4 ticket - $20

*all ticket prices do not include box office fees

Tickets start at $45 for adults, $20 for under 30 and students, and go up to $77 based on the seat location. The least expensive seats are in the back of the balcony and the front row closest to the stage.

Here are some other helpful tips you should keep in mind:

Interested in additional savings? Buy a subscription! Contact us at 406-252-3610 or visit our offices at 2820 2nd Avenue North and we'd be more than happy to find the best deal for you. Subscriptions for our 2025–2026 season are available!
If you’re a student, veteran, or active duty military, be sure to bring your student/VA/Military ID for great discounts!

Third-party tickets are not accepted. All tickets must be purchased through the Alberta Bair Theater Box Office.

What do I wear?

More than anything, we want you to have fun and express your own style when you come to the Billings Symphony, so dress in a way that works for you. Some people love dressing up and going out—if that’s you, do it and you won’t be the only one, we promise. If you prefer to be more casual, then you probably won’t be the only one dressed casually, either. In short, you do you, and we’re just glad you’re joining us.

Where do I park?

On-Street Parking

On City streets, there is both metered parking and posted parking. Metered parking times range from 2 hours to 10 hours and is free after 5 pm and on weekends.

There are two free handicap parking spots on the corner of North Broadway in front of U.S. Bank.

Garages

Park 1
Credit/Debit Cards Only. Located at 2912 Third Avenue North and is open to the public 24-hours per day – the office is open Monday through Friday, from 10:30am-6:30pm. There is free parking on Sundays.

Park 2
Credit/Debit Cards Only. Located at 2651 First Avenue North, Park 2 is open to patrons 24-hours per day – the office is open from 7:15am – 11:00pm, Monday through Saturday.

Park 3
Accepts Cash. Located adjacent to City Hall at 210 North 27th Street and is open 7am-11pm – the office is open Monday through Friday from 10:30am – 6:30pm. There is free parking on Sundays.

Park 4
Located at 515 North 31st Street. The garage and office are open only Monday through Friday from 5:30am – 9:30pm. After 9:30pm, parkers are unable to remove their vehicles from the garage.

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Guest artist

MICHELLE MERRILL | GUEST CONDUCTOR

Michelle Merrill has been inspiring audiences throughout the country with her sharply detailed and vibrant performances. A passionate and dynamic artist, she is the Music Director of both the Winston Salem Symphony and the Coastal Symphony of Georgia, where she has ignited the growth and expansion of each orchestra’s offerings both on and off the stage.

Ms. Merrill’s growing guest conducting schedule includes recent and upcoming engagements with the National Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre national d'Île-de-France, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Las Vegas Philharmonic, Sarasota Orchestra, and the Round Top Music Festival Institute. In past seasons, she has conducted concerts with the San Francisco Opera, National Arts Centre Orchestra (Ottawa), Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Jacksonville Symphony, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, River Oaks Chamber Orchestra (ROCO), Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Toledo Symphony Orchestra, Oklahoma City Philharmonic, West Virginia Symphony, Symphoria (Syracuse), Princeton Symphony Orchestra, Louisiana Philharmonic, Orlando Philharmonic, Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera, Boise Philharmonic, New Music Detroit, and the Northeastern Pennsylvania Philharmonic, where she formerly served as the Assistant Conductor from 2012 - 2015.

During her four-year tenure from 2014 - 2018 as the Assistant and then Associate Conductor of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra under Leonard Slatkin, Ms Merrill helped plan a wide variety of concerts each season, including the renowned educational webcasts, which have reached over 100,000 students to date in classrooms throughout the nation. Holding the title of Phillip and Lauren Fisher Community Ambassador, Ms. Merrill also gave pre-concert lectures, led adult music education seminars, engaged with students and adults in and around Metro Detroit, spoke on behalf of the DSO throughout the community, and participated in hosting Live from Orchestra Hall, the DSO’s free concert webcast that launched in 2011 and is now watched in more than 100 countries.

Ms. Merrill is a proud recipient of a 2016 Solti Foundation U.S. Career Assistance Award as well as the prestigious 2013 Ansbacher Conducting Fellowship as awarded by members of the Vienna Philharmonic and the American Austrian Foundation, which enabled her to be in residence at the world-renowned Salzburg Festival. Born in Dallas, TX, she studied conducting with Dr. Paul C. Phillips at Southern Methodist University’s Meadows School of the Arts, where she holds a Master of Music Degree in conducting and a Bachelor of Music in performance. Apart from music, she loves cooking, running, hiking, and spending time outdoors with her husband, Steve Merrill, who serves as the principal percussionist of the Jacksonville Symphony, and their two sons, Davis and Emmett.

ALESSIO BAX | PIANO

Combining exceptional lyricism and insight with consummate technique, Alessio Bax is without a doubt “among the most remarkable young pianists now before the public” (Gramophone). He catapulted to prominence with First Prize wins at both the 2000 Leeds International Piano Competition and the 1997 Hamamatsu International Piano Competition and is now a familiar face on five continents as a recitalist, chamber musician, and concerto soloist. He has appeared with over 150 orchestras, including the New York, London, Royal, and St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestras, the Boston, Baltimore, Dallas, Cincinnati, Seattle, Sydney, and City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestras, and the Tokyo and NHK Symphony in Japan, collaborating with such eminent conductors as Marin Alsop, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Sir Andrew Davis, Hannu Lintu, Fabio Luisi, Sir Simon Rattle, Ruth Reinhardt, Yuri Temirkanov, and Jaap van Zweden.

As a renowned chamber musician, he recently collaborated with Lisa Batiashvili, Joshua Bell, Ian Bostridge, Lucille Chung, James Ehnes, Vilde Frang, Steven Isserlis, Daishin Kashimoto, François Leleux, Sergei Nakariakov, Emmanuel Pahud, Lawrence Power, Jean-Guihen Queyras, Paul Watkins, and Tabea Zimmermann, among many others.

Since 2017, he has been the Artistic Director of the Incontri in Terra di Siena Festival, a Summer Music Festival in the Val d’Orcia region of Tuscany. He appears regularly in festivals such as Seattle, Bravo Vail, Salon-de-Provence, Le Pont in Japan, Great Lakes, Verbier, Ravinia, Music@Menlo, Aspen and Tanglewood.

In 2009, he was awarded an Avery Fisher Career Grant, and four years later he received both the Andrew Wolf Chamber Music Award and the Lincoln Center Award for Emerging Artists.

Bax’s most recent album releases are Forgotten Dances and Debussy & Ravel for Two with Lucille Chung. His celebrated Signum Classics discography also includes Italian Inspirations; Beethoven’s Hammerklavier and Moonlight Sonatas (a Gramophone Editor’s Choice); Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto; Bax & Chung, a duo disc with Lucille Chung; Alessio Bax plays Mozart, recorded with London’s Southbank Sinfonia; Alessio Bax: Scriabin & Mussorgsky (named “Recording of the Month ... and quite possibly ... of the year” by MusicWeb International); Alessio Bax plays Brahms (a Gramophone Critics’ Choice); Bach Transcribed; and Rachmaninov: Preludes & Melodies (an American Record Guide Critics’ Choice). Recorded for Warner Classics, his Baroque Reflections album was also a Gramophone Editor’s Choice. He performed Beethoven’s Hammerklavier Sonata for Daniel Barenboim in the PBS-TV documentary Barenboim on Beethoven: Masterclass, available on DVD from EMI.

At the age of 14, Bax graduated with top honors from the conservatory of Bari, his hometown in Italy, and after further studies in Europe, he moved to the United States in 1994. He has been on the piano faculty of Boston’s New England Conservatory since the fall of 2019 and serves as co-artistic director of the Joaquín Achúcarro Foundation for emerging pianists.

Bax lives in New York City with pianist Lucille Chung and their daughter, Mila.