Classical Trio Performs at Library

Pictured with their instruments are Tess Miller, Lauren Kruse, and Melissa Straus. The trio has been playing together for four years.

Romance and baroque music filled the Mackinac Island Library Sunday, May 15, as the melodic strains of Mozart and Chopin played through the room. Melissa Straus on bass, Lauren Kruse on viola, and Tess Miller on flute, all from the Lansing area, performed trio selections for the audience gathered within the library.

The event, sponsored by the Mackinac Arts Council and funded, in part, by the Mackinac Island Community Foundation, was meant for students at the school, but on Friday, May 13, when the musicians arrived on the Island, plumbing problems at the school had forced the building to be closed.

According to Ms. Straus, her trio had intended to play during an assembly for the students. It wasn’t until they reached the school, however, that they were informed the presentation had been canceled. With Arts Council director Becki Barnwell out of town for her son’s graduation, Jennifer Bloswick of the Community Foundation stepped in and found a new venue and performance date for the musicians.

Ms. Straus called the session an “informance” instead of a “performance,” and between pieces, the musicians talked with the audience about the music and the instruments they were playing.

Donations were accepted and all proceeds went to the library.