in nature
a world premiere by  David Lang

livestream performance by The Crossing and Roots in the Sky
presented by  Warren Miller Performing Arts Center, Big Sky, Montana

a hybrid performance of live and recorded music,
written for the occasion in the time of the pandemic
produced by John Zirkle and Donald Nally

Saturday, August 1 @ 8pm EDT / 6pm MDT
Our sixth summer residency in the mountains of Montana, with an innovative approach to ensemble singing in the time of COVID-19. David Lang’s in nature was commissioned by The Crossing and WMPAC as a new work specifically designed for a time when we must sing at a distance from one another. That time is here, and that distance is 2100 miles – from Philadelphia to Big Sky. This world premiere of in nature is a hybrid of live and pre-filmed music, all performed safely within recommended guidelines for singing. Singers of The Crossing were filmed and recorded one-at-a-time at the  Icebox Project Space  at  Crane Arts  in Philadelphia; that film will be combined in real time with the live performances of four socially-distanced singers of Bozeman-based Roots in the Sky, singing from WMPAC in Big Sky, Montana.
David Lang writes:

My piece  in nature  began when my friend and frequent collaborator Donald Nally asked if I could imagine a piece that could be performed live, now, during this period when we are all separated from each other by the pandemic.

The question, of course, is how to make it possible for singers to sing together, when they can't be together, or breathe together, or interpret anything together. Add to this how far apart the singers would be — a few would be in Montana and the rest scattered across the East Coast. 

My solution was to create different levels of coordination between groups of singers. Some are pre-recorded, responding to Donald's conducting prompts. Some are essentially floating freely above the others. An extra wrinkle was Donald's idea to have the piece filmed on site, in nature, by a river in Montana, at sunrise. It seemed ironic to me because many of us at this moment are very far away from nature. The distance between being there and not being there underlies everything I have tried to do in this piece.
It takes a Montana-sized team to record a video during a pandemic.

in nature wouldn't be possible without:

Warren Miller Performing Arts Center
John Zirkle, executive and artistic director

David Lang
Bang on a Can

The Crossing
Katy Avery
Jessica Beebe
Karen Blanchard
Steven Bradshaw
Colin Dill
Micah Dingler
Joanna Gates
Michael Jones
Heidi Kurtz
Maren Montalbano
Rebecca Myers
Becky Oehlers
James Reese
Daniel Schwartz
Becky Siler
Daniel Spratlan
Elisa Sutherland
Daniel Taylor
Donald Nally, conductor
John Grecia, keyboards
Kevin Vondrak, assistant conductor & artistic associate

Roots in the Sky
Andrew Major, artistic director
Isobel Anthony
Kayla Bojkovsky
Erin Henke
Ana Jarrett

Digital Mission Audio Services
Paul Vazquez

Four/Ten Media
Evan Chapman
Kevin Eikenberg

Jereco Studios
Luke Scheeler

Gallatin River Video
Micah Robin

WMPAC Staff
Andrew Blessing, Streaming Director
Ace Beattie, Associate Technologist
Jesse Emby, Lighting Designer
Guiliana Olivo, Communications Associate
Rikka Wommack, Communications Manager
Logan Henke, Production Manager

Icebox Project Space at CraneArts
Tim Belknap
Ryan McCartney

Special Thanks:
Elizabeth Glatfelter
Carol Westfall
Thomas Kasdorf
Charles Mueller
Steven Hyder
Becky Siler
Jonathan Bradley
Shannon McMahon
Andrew Major
Big Sky Resort Tax
Yellowstone Club Community Foundation
320 Ranch
Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill