CBCCA announces a varied concert season

MOSES LAKE — The Central Basin Community Concert Association is urging people who love music to get their season tickets early, according to an announcement from the association.

“The best way to see all the shows is by purchasing a season membership,” the CBCCA wrote in the announcement. “We’ve announced our 2024-25 season and are excited for the music coming to the Basin.” 

The first performer for the season will be Kate Voss and the Hot Sauce. Voss got her start playing piano in clubs in Seattle with a variety of bands, according to her official biography. She studied jazz, but found her interests were more varied than that genre would allow, so she formed her own band to play a fusion of jazz, blues, pop, country, western swing, oldies, Americana and rockabilly. Besides piano, Voss sings with a voice reminiscent of Nancy Sinatra and Etta James, and also plays the ukulele bass and melodica. Her band, the Hot Sauce, can be anything from a duo to a sextet and backs her up with a danceable, nostalgic sound.

On Oct. 17, Molly in the Mineshaft will take the stage with a mixture of traditional folk styles including Celtic, bluegrass and blues. The Utah-based septet wields an array of instruments including mandolin, banjo, guitar, cello, fiddle and bagpipes, backing up three vocalists’ harmonies. They’ve won numerous awards and championships for their instrumental work, according to their promotional materials.

The source of the band’s name is somewhat shrouded in mystery, according to their biography. One story holds that it was inspired by a cow that wandered into a mineshaft in California in 2015 and stayed there for three days before being rescued. A more prosaic explanation is that the band members got tired of making up new names every time they played together and “Molly in the Mineshaft” was the only phrase they could all agree on. 

After a hiatus for winter, the series will resume March 24 with the country pop sound of the Hall Sisters. The four — piano, mandolin and guitar player Jessica; violinist Natalie; viola and guitar player Lydia and cellist Valerie — grew up singing and playing together, and their show combines tight harmonies with country and Irish instrumentals. They’ve released seven albums and have played the Grand Ole Opry, Carnegie Hall and Dollywood, as well as a four-country tour in the Balkans. 

Rounding out the season, the Gonzaga Symphony Orchestra will fill the venue with timeless classical music. The Gonzaga Symphony Orchestra has a long tradition as one of the finest student/community orchestras in the region and its repertoire contains some of the most demanding pieces in orchestral music, according to its website. The orchestra’s conductor, Kevin Hekmatpanah, is in his 24th year as music director of the symphony.

Individual season tickets are $70 for adults, $60 for seniors over 60 and $40 for students, according to the CBCCA’s announcement. Tickets for a family are $145, but for a single-parent family the price drops to $95. Tickets are also available for individual performances. In addition, the CBCCA has reciprocity with similar concert associations in several other cities, including Wenatchee and Richland, so ticket holders who miss a show in Moses Lake can see one in another city instead.

Besides the regular concert season, the CBCCA will again stage Dancing with the Moses Lake Stars, a riff on the popular TV show that lets local folks pair up with professional dancers and compete on stage. The inaugural event last year brought in more money to fund the CBCCA than the original goal, and organizers hope it will be at least as successful this year. That event is Jan. 11.

All Columbia Basin Community Concert Association performances are at the Wallenstien Theater at Big Bend Community College.

For more information or to buy season tickets, visit www.communityconcertsml.com.

Joel Martin may be reached via email at jmartin@columbiabasinherald.com

Save the dates

Sept. 26: Kate Voss and the Hot Sauce

Oct. 17: Molly in the Mineshaft

Jan. 11: Dancing with the Moses Lake Stars

March 24: The Hall Sisters

April 13: Gonzaga Symphony Orchestra

    The Hall Sisters will blend tight family harmonies with rich instrumentals at the Wallenstien Theater March 24.
  

    Molly in the Mineshaft will bring a Celtic-bluegrass-folk sound to the Wallenstien Theater Oct. 17 as part of the Central Basin Community Concert Association’s 2024-25 season.