Paul Lawrence, a musical legend Flathead Valley, was once called immer lustig, or always happy, by his German friends.  

While Lawrence, the founder of the valley’s own German band, the Bavarian Echoes, passed away in 2005, his spirit is reflected in the joy the band’s music continues to bring to Whitefish’s Great Northwest Oktoberfest.  

“It’s much like playing banjo,” said Allen Slater, longtime musician and former Flathead High School band director, who co-leads the group.  

“You just feel good when you’re done,” he explained. “There’s no sad banjo music. You’re just happy. And when you play German polka music, it just feels good. And the group enjoys that atmosphere.”  

Their spirited atmosphere is what has helped the 50-year-old band recruit new members, Slater said.  

Baily Nagel, a young mother in Columbia Falls, is the newest member. She joined last year for the love of the music. Now, she plays alongside lifelong musicians, like Marty and Dinah Weimer, who have taught and played in other bands throughout the valley for decades.  

Regardless of their generation, what each Bavarian Echoes member has in common is a love for the joy that their music brings.  

“I love that it is fun music,” said Matthew King, who co-leads the group with Slater.  “I love the style of polka music. The saying goes, you can’t have a bad time if you’re listening to or playing polka. Lots of dancing, lots of smiles.” 

King, the band director at Whitefish High School, described the group as lighthearted, even with the long hours put into Oktoberfest gigs. 

Oktoberfest has always been at the heart of the Bavarian Echoes.  

The band was formed around 1978 after Paul Lawrence and his brother, Don, traveled to an Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany, and thought they ought to give polka a try at home. 

They returned with authentic songs. Throughout the years, they made several more trips to Germany, and also contributed a few of their own compositions, in what would amount to a unique and extensive library for the band. 

The library includes mostly German songs, but also a few other Czech, Polish and other European waltzes and polkas. 

For many years before Whitefish’s Oktoberfest was established, the Bavarian Echoes held their own Oktoberfest, which served as the only fundraiser for the Flathead Valley Community Band. In some years, the Echoes traveled all around the state, giving about 20 performances each fall.  

When Paul passed away in 2005, his brother Don lead the group for a while. When Don died in 2024, Slater and King stepped up as leaders for the group. 

The band currently has 16 members. On clarinet is Dinah Weimer, Maryruth Fallon, Jeanette Rehberg, Bridgette Schultz and Paul Erickson. On trumpet is Marty Weimer, Gerry Schultz and Luke Juris. Playing bar/trombone is Slater and Karen Johnson, Hank Handford and Baily Nagel. On tuba is King, and on drums is David Barr.  

Key to the group’s liveliness are singers and dancers, Carol Free, Jon Free and Elenie King. 

“Carol ends up announcing too, and can tell you about the history of the music,” Slater said. “They’re also just wonderful dancers... ‘One, two, three hop!,’...  they encourage other people to come out.’”  

The Frees capture the true spirit of Oktoberfest, Slater said.  

“The wonderful thing about Oktoberfest, as in Germany, is that it was the way to celebrate the end of the year, and the fresh brew.”