Music at Many

Emily Hackethorn sits at the piano surrounded by musicians as they practice a John Denver tune in a hallway of the Many Glacier Hotel.

"Country roads, take me home, to the place, I belong..." they croon on voices like silk.

It's an hour before show time at the Hotel. For decades Glacier Park Inc. general manager Ian Tippet organized Hootenannies and Broadway-style musicals at Many and they became a tradition at the century-old hotel.

But more than 20 years ago, the shows stopped, as Tippet was no longer manager of the operation.

Enter Hackethorn. The University of Montana music school graduate took a summer job in 2005 playing piano at Many. The next year, there was a large employee reunion and for that occasion, they held a Hootenanny. What's a Hootenanny?

"A gathering of folks playing old-time music," explained player Travis Revicki. Revicki plays banjo by night, waits tables by day.

Hackethorn gathered the musicians who were working at the hotel that summer of 2006 and the Hootenannies were reborn. For the past few years she did the organization on her own time.

This year, Xanterra, the concessionaire that now runs the Hotel, hired her as the Hotel's music director. Now Hackethorn can concentrate solely on the music, and the shows.

"Xanterra has been really supportive," she said. "They've placed musicians at the hotel again."

That's how it was in the old days. If a prospective employee could play an instrument or sing, Tippet would get them a job at Many.

Hackethorn's band is a diverse group. Take Stephanie Miller, when she's not working at the hotel, she's playing accordion or singing with the group.

"I picked up the accordion to play for Irish dance competitions," she explained.

Mimi Genheimer plays fiddle, mandolin and sings. Hackethorn plays piano and guitar. Everyone has a role and they all have fun. About 20 musicians in all play or sing. They practice two nights a week. Hackethorn lives in a nearby home with her two young daughters. Her husband, James, works for the Glacier Park Boat Co.

The atmosphere at a Hootenanny is far from formal. In fact, the audience is encouraged to sing along. A typical set lasts about an hour and half.

At the end of the show on the Fourth of July celebrating the Hotel's centennial, a man in the audience asks, "Hey, where's the John Denver?"

Hackethorn strikes up the band. The entire room is singing.

"Country roads, take me home, to the place, I belong..."

Music is once again alive and well in Many Glacier.