Well, if you're traveling in the north country fair
Where the winds hit heavy on the borderline
Remember me to one who lives there
She once was a true love of mine.
Hey, "Girl From the North Country," VocalEssence is coming by to send Bob Dylan's regards.
The choirs of VocalEssence — which hail from Minneapolis, where Dylan first lived after leaving the northern city of Hibbing — will be bringing Dylan's music to the North Country this week. Conductor Philip Brunelle and the choir will be traveling to Detroit Lakes and Grand Rapids, on the edge of the Iron Range that spawned the Nobel Laureate bard of American folk and rock.
The inspiration for bringing it all back home to Dylan's area of origin is the choral oratorio, "The Times They Are a-Changin'." For the concert-length work, Pittsburgh composer Steve Hackman arranged enough Dylan songs to fill out the set list on one of his "never-ending tour" concerts.
"People think about Dylan's music as solo," Brunelle said from his office at Minneapolis' Plymouth Congregational Church. "Here it is with choir and accompanied by a string quintet and piano, so I'm sure people think upon first hearing of it: Could it possibly work?