The Architecture of Trees is an immersive music performance by cellist and maker Maya Fridman with vocal quartet Storm in a Jar. Music is interwoven with electronic layers derived from recordings of ancient trees, created by sound designer Antal van Nie. Together, sound, space, and movement form a musical ritual that encourages the audience to slow down, listen deeply, and reconnect with what a forest can mean.
At the core of The Architecture of Trees are two new pieces by composers Scott Ordway and Rob Zuidam, unfolding as a single dramaturgical arc. Inspired by the myths and texts in which trees become speaking beings — from Algernon Charles Swinburne’s poem Hertha to the Norse world tree Yggdrasil — the music explores our emotional and symbolic relationship with nature.
The Architecture of Trees is made possible with the support of Fonds Podiumkunsten, Gemeente Utrecht, Het Cultuurfonds, and KF Hein Fonds.
CREDITS
Maya Fridman – concept, direction and electric cello
Fanny Alofs, Rianne Wilbers, Michael Riener, Sterre Konijn – voices
Romain Bischoff – musical and scenic dramaturg
Antal van Nie – field recordings and sound design