MacPhail Center for Music - Austin, MN

🚧🚧🚧The parking lot and main MacPhail door will be closed starting Monday, June 8 due to surface maintenance.

DOOR #1 (on 4th Street, facing east toward the high school) will be unlocked,with signage directing our students into MacPhail.

Thank you!🚧🚧🚧🚧

Join Us! MacPhail Rock Groups with guests Cheap Seats and Hadley Prescott Music. Eagles, Saturday May 9, 7-10pm

We are excited to support the students of AHS Concert Choir and their Director, Kalle Aakerman. Many of these students were part of the MacPhail Children’s choir in 3rd and 4th grade and remain students of MacPhail and APS music programming. Congratulations!

Tomorrow, this choir will travel north to perform for the MMEA Annual Convention! Even though the convention itself pivoted to an online-only experience, we were lucky to be invited to perform at Buffalo HS with the other choirs that were selected to perform. AHS Concert Choir is excited to share nine unique choral works with teachers and students from around the state! Maybe even more excited to eat Raising Cane's afterward.. 😁 They've worked really hard through a lot of challenging times this year... Please give them a big congratulations!

Phil is a remarkable teacher! We are so proud to have him as a MacPhail faculty member!

Meet the people of the A*O - Phil Burkhart, Operations Manager and timpanist. A*O Marketing Manager Rich Frevert recently interviewed Phil.

Rich: Phil, let’s start with your legacy in the Austin community. A large part of that is a distinguished career teaching orchestra in the Austin school system. Tell me about your teaching career.

Phil: I graduated from college in 1972 after getting married. I was looking to be a band director because I was primarily a trombonist. I was also a product of Catholic schools. So, when a band position opened at Assumption High School in Wisconsin Rapids, I applied. I was offered the job, and we decided to go there, thinking we’d stay for three years.
But while we were living in Wisconsin Rapids, the band director position opened at Aquinas High School in La Crosse. My wife and I had both graduated from there, and in fact, had played in both the orchestra and band. At one time, La Crosse had one of the best orchestra programs in Wisconsin. However, by the time we got there, the orchestra had gone away; but they did have a band and still had the orchestra instruments. We thought it would be interesting to go back home and try to resurrect the orchestra program, in addition to building the band program.
While we were in La Crosse, I really started getting into the orchestra world. In fact, I had taken strings in college and played violin in the college orchestra. So, I really got more interested in the orchestral side of teaching and less in the band side.
Then, in 1982, we heard about the opening in Austin for an orchestra director. We had heard good things about the program and heard the orchestra perform at a Minnesota Music conference. I interviewed in Austin, mainly out of curiosity, and ended up taking the position.
That’s when the fun really began. The orchestra program had been cut from three to two directors, so Sue Radloff and I were the whole program. Sue did grades five through seven and I did eight through 12. We did it that way for many, many years. Towards the end we were joined by Deb Linnes, an excellent violinist and teacher from Albert Lea, who taught part-time. It really was a wonderful experience because Sue and Deb are great to work with. We had some wonderful students and made several convention appearances with the orchestra. I especially enjoyed doing orchestral literature that really challenged the kids. I’m talking about pieces that the Austin Symphony often performs now.

Rich: I understand that you then started conducting the Austin Symphony. Tell us about that.

Phil: That’s right. I had kept my hand in playing trombone with the Austin Symphony and as a sub with the Rochester Symphony. That led to an offer from the Austin Symphony to become their conductor, which I was for six years. But by the end of those six years, the Austin High School orchestra had really become a massive program. There was so much growth and touring that I decided I couldn't do the symphony, the high school orchestra and have a family life. My boys were teenagers, so I gave up conducting the Austin Symphony. That was when Steve Ramsey was hired.

Rich: What happened then?

Phil: Professionally, I started having opportunities to be a clinician and guest conductor outside of Austin. I was also the volunteer president of Austin Civic Music for a few years. Then I retired in 2013.

Rich: But you didn’t stop, did you?

Phil: That’s right. I continued to be a clinician, guest conductor and judged large group and solo competitions. This continues to be my main outside work today. I judge in Wisconsin and Minnesota almost every weekend in the spring. I really, really enjoy that, especially working with large groups. I also do quite a bit of volunteering with the schools, do some subbing and work for MacPhail as an adjunct teacher.

Rich: How do you feel that all the things you did in education helped with your professional conducting?

Phil: Well, I think it's a very good question. When I was teaching, I encouraged kids to be involved with the symphony, and of course, I was playing with the symphony. I had a lot of involvement with students coming and playing with the symphony. That is still happening today. As a player, I eventually developed into an actual string player of sorts. I played string bass for many years and then after an injury, I moved to timpani.
The fine musicians of the A*O probably played in high school and college and are there looking for an outlet. They're not professionals, so they need some coaching. It's at a different level, but fundamentally, it's still teaching, and you're still using the skills of the teacher when you're conducting the orchestra.
I also conduct the Owatonna Symphony. Their aspiration is to be like the Austin Symphony, so I’m helping them get there. I’m finding that there is a certain satisfaction when you have an orchestra of adults who reach a level that they didn't know they could attain. When they reach that level, it's a really, a wonderful feeling. They don't talk about it much, but you can see it in their faces, you know.

Rich: Let’s talk about your current role as Operations Manager with the Austin Symphony. How did that come about?

Phil: This opportunity came at a point in my life where I was looking for a new challenge. Martha Chancellor, the previous manager, was retiring so when they reached out, I was excited to accept the offer.
It is a lot of work, but there's always something to do. This job is meaningful to me because it's about music and I work with volunteer musicians and volunteer staff. It's not about money, it's about doing, helping people. And that's exactly what I needed.
I deal with people all around the world, including artists and their agents. I continue to learn about how to deal with people; friendly and yet firm.
If I have any strengths, I think one is the ability to look at all sides of a situation. I say to myself, “what are the different approaches we can take to this issue”. In addition, I find that it is most important to treat people with kindness and respect. This is especially important when the goal of the organization is the sharing of feelings through music.
When I came into the orchestra so many years ago, it wasn't nearly at the level it is now, either artistically or financially. There are three factors that have made a big difference in growing the organization to where it is today. One is Steve Ramsey, because the conductor is the guiding light of an orchestra. Steve has been really very, very good and very professional. The second is the leadership provided by the Board of Directors. This leadership really makes all the difference in how things happen. Lastly, our ticket buyers and donors provide the financial resources necessary to keep the A*O vibrant.
Going forward, I think we're in a very good situation, very good position. The A*O Is one of the best community orchestras in Minnesota.

Rich: Finally, I’ll ask the age-old interview question. What do you see the A*O being in five years?

Phil: I would say that if we maintain what we're doing, that will be incredible, and I think we will. We will continue to offer great musical events and educational concerts that will continue to build tomorrow’s audiences.

MacPhail Austin will be closed this evening because of weather concerns.

Congratulations! The students and entire community are really fortunate to have such an amazing teacher!

Congrats to Mr. Wightkin for being named this month's ABC 6 Excellent Educator! ⬇️Click the link in the comments to read more

MacPhail Austin will not open today 12/18 and will remain closed Friday 12/19. There is a maintenance issue in the High school annex. Thanks for understanding.