Bowerbird presents:
Begin Anywhere
a concert series about starting new things
April 11, May 3, May 15 (only this event is at The Rotunda; the others are elsewhere. Read below), and June 5
Awesome music and damn good advice.
This is a series about starting a new music ensemble. In Philadelphia. In 2015. But it is also a series for anyone that's ever tried to make something with other people. It's about starting a non-profit, or an ensemble, or a business, or choosing not too. It's about being unstoppable in the face of soul-crushing paperwork, or just finding your own path. It's about asking the question "How are we going to do this?", answering "I don't know", and giving it a shot anyway. It's also a chance to hear some great music and words of wisdom.
The backdrop.
Our story begins in the fall of 2014, when a few of us (see below) got the idea to start a new contemporary music ensemble. We felt we had a good idea, that the timing was right, and that others would want to join us. But we also had lots of questions: Who was going to be in the group? What would we play? How should decisions-- artistic and otherwise-- be made? These questions are huge, but we were itching to start. So we began with these questions, and decided to open our process to the public.
Earlier this year we sent out two groups of invitations. One was sent to musicians with the simple request that they perform something they are excited about. The other was sent to members of our community, people that have started their own things-- in music, in dance, in theater, in ice cream-- and survived (and thrived) to tell about it.
Brass tacks.
Each event will weave approximately 60 minutes of music and 60 minutes of discussion in a casual setting with light refreshments and drinks.
Admission to each of these events is FREE but we're asking you to consider making a sliding scale pay what you feel good about donation at the door. All proceeds from these events are being used to establish a seed fund for "The Ensemble". To be transparent, all of the performers and speakers for this initial 4 event series are donating their time.
THE EVENTS
Chapter 1:
Saturday, April 11, 2015, 8pm
MAAS BUILDING
1325 N Randolph St
Philadelphia, PA 19122
Performances by:
Eric Derr (percussion)
Heather Gardner (voice)
Elizabeth Huston (harp)
Alize Rozsnyai (voice)
Joel Weszka (clarinet)
Conversations with:
Jeri Lynne Johnson (Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra)
David Brick (Headlong Dance Theater)
Whit MacLaughlin (New Paradise Laboratories)
--
Chapter 2:
Sunday, May 3, 2015, 8pm
the <fidget> space
1714 N. Mascher S t
Philadelphia, PA 19122
Performances by:
Vena Johnson (violin)
Tom Kraines (cello)
Chris Schelb (flute)
Aaron Stewart (saxophone)
Eric Derr (percussion)
Heather Gardner (voice)
Michael Tan (piano)
Tessa Ellis (trumpet)
Conversations with:
James Freeman (Orchestra2001)
Pete Angevine & Martin Brown (Little Baby's Ice Cream)
Stanford Thompson (Play On, Philly!)
--
Chapter 3:
Friday, May 15, 2015, 8pm
The Rotunda
4014 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106
Performances by:
Jerrell Jackson (bass)
Chris Schelb (flute)
Elizabeth Huston (harp)
and more tbd
Conversations with:
Alex Torra, Makoto Hirano, & Benjamin Camp (Team Sunshine Performance Corporation)
Hanna Khoury (Al-Bustan Seeds of Culture)
Brian McTear (Weathervane Music)
--
Chapter 4:
Friday, June 5, 2015, 8pm
Fleisher Art Memorial
719 Catharine St
Philadelphia, PA 19147
Performances by:
Eric Derr (percussion)
Heather Gardner (voice)
Elizabeth Huston (harp)
Jerrell Jackson (bass)
Alize Rozsnyai (voice)
Chris Schelb (flute)
Michael Tan (piano)
Tessa Ellis (trumpet)
Conversations with:
Diane Foglizzo (Girls Rock Philly)
Thomas Choinacky (SoLow Festival, Applied Mechanics)
Donald Nally (The Crossing)
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Begin Anywhere has been created and produced by Eric Derr, Heather Gardner, Elizabeth Huston, Thomas Patteson and Dustin Hurt. We would like to thank all of the musicians and speakers for donating their time to this experiment.
INTERESTED IN GETTING INVOLVED?
Are you a musician interested in performing? Do you have a venue that would like to host event? Are you a composer that would like to see a new ensemble in town? Would you like to become a sponsor or otherwise be involved? If so, say hi. Send an email to Dustin Hurt, Director of Bowerbrd at: dustin@bowerbird.org.