The Forest: (D)ruminating Contemplations…

OPEN TO THE PUBLIC | The Forest, a cooperative of percussionists and composers founded by Andrew Drury in 2021, explores textures & rhythms composed and improvised on percussion instruments from around the world, including extended wind techniques for drums developed by Andrew Drury. The group will premiere new works by its members, along with selections from (D)ruminations for Edward Blackwell (2022).

The Forest is a five-person percussion ensemble with roots in Contemporary New Music and African-Diasporic musical forms based in New York and San Diego that prioritizes improvisation and collaborative generative processes. Its members are Gustavo Aguilar, Leah Bowden, Andrew Drury, Lesley Mok, and Bennington College music faculty member Michael Wimberly.

The Forest recorded its first studio album in June 2022, which is scheduled for a late 2023 release (advance copies are available for the first time at the Bennington performance). The album features guest performers Warren Smith, pioneering percussionist from the ensemble M’BOOM co-founded with Max Roach, and the legendary multi-reed saxophonist J.D. Parran.

The Forest will perform new compositions by its members (tba), and excerpts from “(D)ruminations”, which is an arrangement of material culled from the Don Cherry/Ed Blackwell duo recordings “Mu First Part” and “Mu Second Part” from 1969. Drury mentored with Blackwell from 1983 until 1992 and recently began the (D)ruminations series to explore specific drum patterns, sonic images, and ideas that emerged from his time spent listening to and studying with Blackwell, memories that have lovingly haunted Drury’s musical imagination for 40 years.