Back to All Events

Flutes in the Garden

  • Leach Botanical Garden 6704 Southeast 122nd Avenue Portland, OR, 97236 United States (map)

With Flutes in the Garden, composer Deena T. Grossman brings her “elegant music [to this] equally graceful setting:” (East PDX News) the Leach Botanical Garden. With musical soundscapes directly inspired by the plants, trees, and spaces of this special place, Grossman celebrates a universal interconnectedness and the importance of environmental stewardship in true Oregonian style. The concert features two World Premieres of pieces for flute sextet, created especially for performance on the garden’s Aerial Tree Walk: the beautifully atmospheric Circular Bridge, and Thrice Burned Forest, a sonic response to the stark landscape left behind by the immense wildfires at Mount Adams (2008 Cold Springs fire, 2012 Cascade Creek fire, and 2015 Cougar Creek fire) that reflects mysterious sounds of women’s voices and percussive rattling that the composer heard while hiking there. Piccolos, flutes, alto flutes, and bass flutes will connect the audience to the magical environment under the forest canopy. The roster of performers features a variety of artistic voices that include jazz superstar John C. Savage and local new music luminary and Powell Flutes Artist Amelia Lukas, along with Antares Boyle, Gabriela Gimenes, Elaine Martir, and Natalie Van Slyke. Directly following the hour-long concert program, guests are invited to stay for an after-party to enjoy drinks, conversation with the composer and performers, and Brazilian music by Choro da Alegria. Proceeds from this concert equally benefit both the garden and Columbia Riverkeeper where Grossman is composer in residence. 

Tickets: $30 advance; $36 at the door.