Root Song

Root Song invites audiences to discover the ancient wisdom of the trees. Presented by the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society and premiered at Bartram’s Garden, the project interweaves the immersive vocal textures created by Roomful of Teeth—an eight-voice “singing forest”—with Indigenous storytelling, transforming the unseen realities of the woodland into a musical conversation. Inspired by the research of Suzanne Simard (Finding the Mother Tree) and the writing of Robin Wall Kimmerer (Braiding Sweetgrass), Root Song asks: What can trees teach us about how to live, listen, and be human at this pivotal moment?

At the heart of Root Song is a large-scale work (performed twice) that imaginatively gives voice to the trees through the music of Christopher Theofanidis, poetry of Melissa Studdard, and Indigenous storytelling of Tchin. It is accompanied by workshops, nature walks, and a panel discussion featuring Robin Wall Kimmerer and Suzanne Simard that explore the interconnectedness of the natural world and our role within this web of relationships. In an age of ecological loss and cultural forgetting, Root Song creates a space to remember and reclaim old ways: the habit of listening, the work of restoration, and the practice of reciprocity.

Friday, May 29 | 7:30 PM – Root Song World Premiere I and nature walk with Suzanne Simard (Bartram’s Garden)

Saturday, May 30 | 7:30 PM – Panel Discussion with Robin Wall Kimmerer and Suzanne Simard (Perelman Theater)

Sunday, May 31 | 3:00 PM – Root Song World Premiere II and nature walk with Robin Wall Kimmerer (Bartram’s Garden)

Presented with lead sponsorship from The Albert M. Greenfield Foundation and Andrea Baldeck and with additional support from ArtPhilly (project partner); Gordon & Patricia Fowler; Pauline Candaux and Sol Katz; Kenneth Rainin Foundation, as recommended by Moy Eng; Katherine Niven; Louise & David Strawbridge; and Joan & David Kligerman. Philadelphia Chamber Music Society is a recipient of Chamber Music America’s Classical Commissioning: A Responsive Shift grant, funded by Chamber Music America, with generous support from the Sewell Family Foundation.

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