Tanglewood Learning Institute Announces Changing States, a Free Arts and Ecology Symposium on Saturday, April 25 Starting at 10 a.m.

Tanglewood Learning Institute (TLI) honors Earth Day with an exciting new addition to the spring schedule at the Linde Center: Changing States — An Arts and Ecology Symposium. Free and open to the public, the April 25 symposium brings together members of the public, artists, scientists, local leaders, and thinkers to explore what's possible when artistic and scientific processes combine to confront a changing climate. Following the symposium (10 a.m. to 4:45 p.m.) is a 7 p.m. concert offering the world premiere of postWintereisse, a transformation of Schubert’s famous song cycle Wintereisse inspired by our changing environment. Curated by Andrew Munn, RR Sigel, and Laura Sheinkopf, Changing States has been planned and will be presented in collaboration with Mass Audubon. 

Changing States opens with a keynote address by Anne Therese Gennari, author of The Climate Optimist, a handbook on reframing how we talk about, think about, and address the climate crisis. Following Gennari’s keynote is a series of workshops offered over the course of the day guiding participants through the stages of observation, creative process, and taking action. Session leaders include Jennifer Tafe (Museum of American Bird Art, Mass Audubon), Will Conklin (Greenagers), Paula Matthusen (composer, Wesleyan College), Sarah Moon (Write Your Roots, Roger Williams College), and many more. Throughout the day, participants will connect with one another and with the grounds of Tanglewood through a series of grounding sessions that connect the symposium’s concepts with the natural landscape.  Click here for a more detailed schedule. 

The symposium culminates in a 7 p.m. world premiere performance of postWinterreise, which unfolds with(in) a cyclical sound environment — a sculptural sound installation in which melting ice, flowing water, found objects, metal, and wood bodies resonate and transform the sound of live voice and piano as they navigate the fragmentation of Schubert’s score. In postWinterreise, music, sound, ice, and water are cyclically linked in a dramaturgy of environmental and physical transformation, asking who we will become in a world where winter itself is becoming a memory. Performed by bass Andrew Munn, pianist Elenora Pertz, and Jared Redmond on live electronics, postWinterreise follows a performance of the original song cycle Wintereisse by Munn and Pertz the previous evening (Fri., April 24, 7 p.m.). In conjunction with Friday night’s performance of Wintereisse, representative from The Bookstore, a fixture in Lenox for over 40 years, will be on hand to sell copies of Schubert's Winter Journey: Anatomy of an Obsession by Ian Bostridge. The book is a remarkable and detailed exploration of the song cycle, exploring how Schubert sets Wilhelm Müller’s poems to music, and the broader historical and literary world surrounding it. Among its many references, the book mentions Edith Wharton, making for a poignant local connection.  

The weekend concludes with a TLI Cinematics screening of Koyaanisqatsi, a pioneering documentary built around footage of natural landscapes and forces giving way to the modern world (Sun., April 26, 3 p.m.). Forgoing dialogue or narration in lieu of Philip Glass’ iconic score, Koyaanisqatsi is an immersive experience that shows how our embrace of technology has created a “life out of balance.” Presented in collaboration with The Triplex Cinema and Berkshire International Film Festival, the screening will be followed by a talkback with environmental speakers who are a part of the weekend’s events.  Wintereisse, postWinterreise, and Koyaanisqatsi all require tickets, which may be purchased at bso.org.  

Changing States and postWintereisse reflect TLI’s ongoing commitment to partnering with artists, promoting discussion and learning, and introducing audiences to new and sometimes unusual works early in their creative lifecycles. Recent world premieres at TLI include a words and music reading of Aracelis Girmay’s An Experiment in Voices and two performances of Play With Time, a reconfigured conversation between Philip Glass and the visual artist Fredericka Foster, featuring Glass’ own music. This summer, TLI offers the world premiere of February 1933: The Winter of Literature, a reading with music of Uwe Wittstock’s account of the persecution of literary leaders in Weimar Germany (Sat., Aug 1, 2 p.m.).