Bowerbird is pleased to present an online talk with John Driscoll and Phil Edelstein, hosted by exhibition co-curators You Nakai and Dustin Hurt.

John Driscoll and Phil Edelstein are founding members of Composers Inside Electronics (CIE), a collaborative group formed in 1973 that has been central to the evolution and continuation of David Tudor’s Rainforest works. In this conversation, they trace the remarkable trajectory of Rainforest from its origins as a 1968 sound score for Merce Cunningham’s dance to its transformation into Rainforest IV, a groundbreaking performed installation where each collaborator designs and constructs sculptural loudspeakers that become instruments in themselves. Driscoll and Edelstein will discuss the collaborative workshop in New Hampshire that birthed Rainforest IV, the research into rotating speakers and directional sound that emerged from their work together, and how they have continued to develop Tudor’s vision in the decades since his passing. This includes their creation of Rainforest V, a self-running installation version that has been acquired by institutions including MoMA and has introduced Tudor’s radical approach to sound sculpture to new audiences worldwide. The conversation offers rare insight into what it means to sustain and evolve a collaborative artwork across generations while honoring its original spirit of experimentation and shared discovery.

This online program starts at 6:00pm Eastern US time as a Zoom Webinar. Registration is required, but free.

This event is part of A VIEW FROM INSIDE: DAVID TUDOR AT 100, an exhibition at Drexel’s Pearlstein Gallery from January 15 to March 21, 2026.

Major support for A View from Inside has been provided by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage
with additional support from the Musical Fund Society of Philadelphia.