The Great Falls Symphony opens its 67th season and its search for the next maestro at the Mansfield Theater on Oct. 4.

Each of the season’s six concerts will feature a finalist for music director and conductor.

It’s a two year search process that began last season, drawing 238 applications from across the globe, according to Hillary Shepherd, the symphony’s executive director.

The symphony established a 12-person search committee composed of conductors, musicians and those with administration experiences.

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They broke into teams of three, with each reviewing about a quarter of the applications, whittling the list down to 13 candidates who were asked to answer a set of questions on video, Shepherd told The Electric this spring.

The full search committee reviewed those responses and further narrowed the list down to six candidates with two alternates.

The top six were scheduled for the season’s concerts and started programming, which “gets perspective of how they thing,” Shepherd said. “Programming is a vessel by which to achieve an artistic vision.”

“Really amazing programs” are planned for the search season and “our community will be involved” through surveys and events, Shepherd said. “It’s going to be a pretty amazing time getting to know everybody. It will be fulfilling and exciting for everybody involved and the community gets a say in making sure the next maestro or maestra is the perfect fit for Great Falls.”

First up on Oct. 4 is Ryan Tani, who is currently in his third season as associated conductor of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra.

“Each of the candidates has imbued something in their program that shares who they are. Mine follows a theme of star-crossed lovers and explores orchestral color and emotional storytelling. From the timelessness of West Side Story to the brilliance of Fandango, I’m just thrilled to share this music, and phenomenal violin soloist and friend, Ilana Setapen, with you,” Tani said in his concert notes.

For more details on his program, read the music selections and Tani’s notes here.

After each of the concerts, the symphony will unlock a survey on its website for the community to share feedback.

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This season is a bit different with each candidate giving free pre-concert talks at 6:30 p.m. The talks are about 30 minutes leaving time to grab a drink in the lobby and mingle before finding your seat for the concerts that begin at 7:30 p.m.

As of Oct. 2, there were about 200 tickets left since the opening show will have fewer available seats due to the city’s seat replacement project that is not yet finished.

Tani arrived in town on Sept. 28 and will remain through Oct. 5.

It’s been a busy week, he told The Electric, with rehearsals, visits with the symphony’s youth orchestra, speaking to band and orchestra students at Great Falls High School, touring the C.M. Russell and History museums, meeting the board, dinners with donors and more.

He said it was great to see how passionate locals were about their symphony orchestra and wanted to ensure it remains in the city.

Great Falls is the only symphony in Montana with a paid core of professional musicians, with each concert costing an estimated $50,000, according to the symphony. Ticket sales cover about 20 percent of operational costs and local support makes up the bulk of the symphony’s funding.

“A life without music, it’s everything for me, something I can’t live without. The more we can share that with others, the better. In a town like this, participation in the arts is more of a community facing initiative. Your friends are on stage, you neighbors, your enemies,” Tani joked. “Music is a common language.”

Over his career, he said, “it’s so cool to know there are so many people out there who are so passionate about it who aren’t necessarily in it every day,” who invest in the arts through donations, buying tickets, attending performances, getting music lessons for their children.

“I always ask myself how can we get more people into the symphony,” Tani said, which is a common discussion at the Great Falls Symphony and others like it nationwide.

He said in a place like Great Falls, there’s power in the word of mouth and local media outlets.

“People are listening and ready to engage more readily” than in larger cities, he said, and he’s often run into people who are surprised to find out such cultural resources like symphonies exist in their communities.

He’s grateful for first time listeners, but hopes they’ll turn into repeat listeners.

Tani has been to Great Falls before, having spent some time with the Bozeman and Billings symphonies.

His wife is from Billings and during medical school, she did some work in Browning with drumming circles and mental health.

In Great Falls this week, he said he’s run into a lot of people within a few days of meeting them for the first time.

There’s a “community vibe,” he said and he was honored to be the first candidate in the search season, encouraging people to “check us all out and have your voices heard.”