Bowerbird is pleased to present a morning birdwalk at Awbury Arboretum led by Jason Hall with two performances by Elijah J. Thomas on flute and Tom Kraines on cello. This event is in partnership with S(tree)twork Project and In Color Birding.
Meet at the Lightning House at Awbury Arboretum
DIRECTIONS:
Please note that Awbury Arboretum has two main sections divided by Washington Lane. The S(tree)twork structure will be built on the ruin of a former barn located in the Farm at Awbury portion. The site is located near Washington Lane. If you are arriving via car, the best location for parking is on Ardleigh Street.
Please take note of the weather and dress accordingly with appropriate footwear.
Estimated run time: 120 minutes
Distance: approx. one mile
Free admission – reservations are encouraged
ABOUT THE EVENT
Follow the Sound is a communal outdoor listening experience that combines a guided nature walk with live music. Each ambulatory program is attuned to the here and now of its site — birds, bugs, water, and wind — creating a moment of shared awareness and presence.
Follow the Sound events are free and have been hosted at various sites throughout the Philadelphia area including John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum, the Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education, Stoneleigh: a natural garden, and more, each led by a naturalist with expertise of the local ecosystem.
Each ~90-minute program entails walking a distance of less than one mile, usually on flat, accessible terrain. A wide range of diverse musicians have participated on an array of flutes, electronics, violins, viola da gamba, and more, in solo and impromptu duo formats.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Elijah J. Thomas (he/him) is a Black Philadelphia-born, Harlem-based flutist, multi-instrumentalist, educator, producer, and composer/experimentalist. Elijah studied woodwind performance/improvisation with Dick Oatts, Tim Warfield, Jr., Walter Bell, and Dr. Cynthia Folio; composition with Kevin Rodgers, Dr. Cynthia Folio, and Dr. Maurice Wright; and music education studies with Dr. Rollo Dilworth and Dr. Allison Reynolds. Elijah has held teaching positions with Temple University Music Prep, Settlement Music School, Tune Up Philly (Philadelphia Youth Orchestra), Education Through Music, BASIS Independent Schools, and Carnegie Hall. He creates what he calls “enuff music”: music for Black healing and spiritual transcendence.
Notable work includes the commission and premier of his site-responsive work For Harlem for the new music organization Music At The Anthology, or MATA (debuted at the Kente Royal Gallery in Harlem, NYC, October 2021); collaboration with the International Contemporary Ensemble for their “Ensemble Evolution” partner program with The New School (2020-2024); winner of “Best Film Score” at the Pure Magic International Film Festival for the documentary short Fan of Cory (awarded February 2021 in Amsterdam, The Netherlands); and selection as one of ten commissioned composers of color to participate in the inaugural “Composing Inclusion” program, a joint collaboration between The Juilliard School, New York Philharmonic, and American Composers Forum (powered by the Sphinx Venture Fund, 2022–2024).
Elijah is Musical Director of the non-profit performance-based organization Honk NYC!, whose mission is to “make events that reclaim, reuse, and redefine public space and connect communities through music-making, pageantry, audience participation, and education.”
Thomas Kraines, a graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music and the Juilliard School, has gained renown as a versatile cellist, composer, and teacher. In addition to the Daedalus Quartet, he performs often with his wife, violinist Juliette Kang, with the Philadelphia-based Network for New Music, the Arcana Ensemble, and the improvisatory ensembles Great Blue Heron and Basquiat Blues. Kraines’ solo cello and chamber compositions have been heard around the country. He has performed his own works in collaboration with artists such as Awadagin Pratt, Mimi Stillman, Maria Jette, Ilana Davidson, and Kinan Abou-afach. Kraines has served on the faculty of the Longy School of Music, Princeton University, Peabody Conservatory, Phillips Academy Andover, and Yellow Barn. He currently teaches at the University of Pennsylvania and the Settlement Music School in Philadelphia. He has performed chamber music at the Moab Music Festival, Festival dei Due Mondi (Spoleto, Italy), Bravo! Vail, Caramoor Summer Music Festival, Next Generation Festival, Portland Chamber Festival, Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival, Mostly Mozart Festival, and Bard Music Festival. Kraines studied cello with Frederic Raimi, Orlando Cole, and Joel Krosnick, and composition with Tom Benjamin. He lives in Philadelphia with his wife Juliette and daughters Rosalie and Clarissa.
Jason Hall is a team member of In Color Birding which provides an entry point to birding for BIPOC communities in and around Greater Philadelphia. The organization believes that everyone should have safe, joyful, and rewarding access to green spaces and the practice of birding. In Color Birding is an inclusive environment for those traditionally marginalized to increase their connections to and appreciation of the natural world through bird walks, presentations, funding of transportation costs for classrooms, teacher mini-grants, and visits to local sites.
Organized in collaboration with World Askew and funded in part by PECO, Team Pennsylvania, and Pennsylvania Creative Industries
