THE FOREST

The Forest is a cooperative percussion ensemble featuring Gustavo Aguilar, Leah Bowden, Andrew Drury, Lesley Mok, and Michael Wimberly—five artists who possess deep experience with collective performing, improvising, and composing, all while in dialogue with a range of African, Asian and Indigenous diasporic practices, among other musicking approaches and philosophies.

The Forest engages in collaborations, performances, and workshops with diverse communities through the development of newly composed works and the exploration of performance techniques in unconventional physical settings and acoustic spaces. The resulting sonic experience represents a cultivation of each members’ artistic vision, centering a unique perspective on musical form and play.

In 2022 and 2023 the Forest did two US tours that included performances in nine cities and venues such as Roulette, Lincoln Center, Edgefest (Ann Arbor), Cal Arts, Bread & Salt (San Diego), and elsewhere. The Forest has also done masterclasses with seven universities, workshops with community organizations in seven cities, and improvisations at the US/Mexican border fence and in the Cascade Mountains.

The Forest will be releasing their first studio recording—(D)ruminations (Different Track Recordings)—featuring special guests Warren Smith (percussion) and J. D. Parran (multiple wind instruments), in June, 2024.