Renowned as one of today's most influential voices in choral conducting, Maestro Craig Hella Johnson brings unparalleled depth of knowledge, artistic sensitivity, and rich imagination to his programs. Johnson assembles some of the finest singers in the country to form a world-class, award-winning ensemble committed to creating dynamic choral art. Beloved by audiences, lauded by critics and composers, and revered by singers, Johnson is known for crafting musical journeys that create deep connections between performers and listeners. The Wall Street Journal praised his ability to "find the emotional essence other performers often miss," and Fanfare wrote that "Craig Hella Johnson has assembled and molded a first-rate choir to be respected as highly as the best we have had."
The Workshop: EVERYTHING BELONGS
A conversation with conductor, composer, and creative Craig Hella Johnson exploring music's connection to spirituality, nature, and the artist's expression of self and beingness.
The details: 2pm in RSV
Sam King serves as Director of Sustainability for the United States Marist school network and Project Manager for the Emmy Award-winning Journey of the Universe film and multimedia project, hosting the Journey of the Universe: 10 Years Later podcast, and curating the monthly newsletter. He received a Master of Arts in Religion and Ecology with a certificate in Educational Leadership and Ministry from Yale Divinity School, and was a Teaching Fellow at the School of the Environment for Professors Mary Evelyn Tucker and John Grim.
The Workshop: Exploring Participatory Cosmology as a Pathway for Hope
This workshop will explore participatory cosmology as an emerging framework for deepening connection to the Earth and generating the psychic energies needed for ecological transformation. Through a combination of meditation, visualization, and freewriting, we will consider how we might align our consciousness with the grain of cosmic evolution.
The details: 2pm Latourette
Liz MacWhirter is an award-winning writer pursuing a DPhil in Theology through Creative Practice. Her debut novel, 'Black Snow Falling' (Scotland Street Press, 2018), launched to critical acclaim.
'Blue: a lament for the sea' by Liz MacWhirter. Performance & discussion.
'Blue: a lament for the sea' is a performative reading of a 20-minute poem with a film accompaniment, immersing the audience in a surreal flooding landscape and one woman's journey through ecological grief. The poem was inspired by a medieval prophecy which foretold that the sacred Scottish Isle of Iona would arise above an apocalyptic sea flood. Words that wintered a thousand years are unfolded in 'Blue', haunting the Anthropocene. Q&A follows the performance.
Underwater film by artist and theologian Jonathan Kearney. Special thanks to the Institute of Sacred Music for funding this performance.
The details: 2:50pm ISM Great Hall
Diego Ellis Soto is a Uruguayan PhD candidate in Ecology at Yale University and a NASA FINESST Future Investigator. Working at the intersection of ecology, technology and environmental justice, he researches how animals move across the world under increasing human threats and a changing climate. He is interested in how our access to biodiversity data is shaped by our socioeconomic status, and how past and present social inequalities amplify current disparities in environmental sciences. As a music producer, Diego blends sounds from biological concepts and technologies with music theory. For example, making eight termites jam together or migrating wildebeest tuning their hooves to electronica!
The Workshop: Narratives Blending Science, Environmentalism, Arts, and Racial Justice
In this workshop we will explore how communities can contribute to bottom-up initiatives that collect biodiversity information to improve understanding around city wildlife distribution and achieve more just environmental outcomes. Diego will share his ongoing projects merging environmental education with music and environmental justice, including his work with bird song.
Details: 2:50pm Niebuhr
