A close-up of alphorns in Leavenworth for the 2018 Alphorn Celebration.
World file photo
LEAVENWORTH — The sound of music in the Bavarian-style village of Leavenworth is made by the 12-foot-long alphorn. And, this weekend is a special event for alphorn players to workshop and perform in their traditional attire of lederhosen and dirndl.
The 2023 Northwest Alphorn Workshop and Retreat from Thursday to Sunday has attracted 45 musicians from Canada and around the U.S., including Illinois, New Mexico, California, Nevada and more, as well as the Leavenworth Alphorns’ group of 12. The event coincides with the Leavenworth Alphorn Celebration, Saturday and Sunday.
A Saturday concert at 7 p.m. “features basically our best players, most of which are the instructors, and we consider that an alphorn virtuoso concert,” said Thomas Tilton, member of Leavenworth Alphorns. A few numbers will be performed en masse by the whole group.
Another Sunday afternoon recital will also be at the gazebo, 820 Front St., Leavenworth. That’s where the Leavenworth Alphorns perform regularly in the summer at 5 p.m. on Saturdays, while times vary in the spring.
The long alphorns don’t have valves or holes, but do disassemble into “three 4-foot sections that fit nicely in a soft case,” Tilton said, for those who ask “‘How do you get that in your Volkswagen?’”
The sponsors of the retreat include the city of Leavenworth, Leavenworth Chamber of Commerce, Hotel Pension Anna, Icicle Village Resort and Projekt Bayern.
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