For the Trees
(Formerly "The Song of the Lorax")
How this piece came to be...
In the summer of 2019 I made a pilgrimage of sorts...to visit a tree. "Big Lonely Doug" is a Douglas Fir on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, that is at least 1,000 years old. He also lives in a region of the world where trees like him are regularly mowed down by clear-cut logging. More or less by a fluke, Doug was spared when the loggers came through his grove, leaving him standing tall in the midst of a massive clear-cut. When the photographer T.J. Watt's photos of this curious scene got noticed, the story went viral: here was another one of those iconic photographs that so perfectly captures the situation that it immediately galvanizes a response.
I have long been a "tree-hugger." I grew up in the woods, and I have always felt a sacred connection to trees and the forest. For years I've wondered about how to address the crisis of deforestation of old growth forests through my music, but I didn't see how until I met Big Lonely Doug: then I knew.
This show has many elements: sound design, the stunning visual imagery of T.J. Watt, the words of individuals sharing their memories of trees, and of course music. The intent of the program is to immerse the audience in the world of trees, to experience the forest from Big Lonely Doug's perspective: the loneliness of life today, recalling the joy of growing and living in the centuries before Westerners showed up and started cutting down the massive forests of Vancouver Island--and the terror that rained down when they did. But beyond these things, I want this show to motivate action. If the audience leaves feeling only despair and hopelessness, I'll have failed. To that end, I invite you to stay after the show and speak with forest experts on the stresses we have placed on our forest ecosystems worldwide, and to find ways that you can be involved in ending the self-inflicted injury we are doing to ourselves and our planet.
Thank you and I hope you are inspired to bring healthy forests to your own community.
In Peace,
Jeff
Cast of Creatives
Jeffrey Nytch, Composer and producer
Nathan Hall, Forest sound design (source material courtesy of David George Haskell)
Nate Rothenberg, Interview sound collage
T.J. Watt, Photographer
The Lorax Project
Any time For the Trees is performed, we partner with local and national organizations, schools, climate activists, and philanthropists to inspire and equip communities to promote healthy forests in their own communities. We are proud to have supported initiatives throughout Colorado, in New York City, and in the Midwest...and we're just getting started! To learn more about how you can get involved, or to book a performance of For the Trees with one of our partner musical groups, contact us here!
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Watch the New York Premiere of For the Trees
Featuring the award-winning Tesla Quartet at the esteemed National Sawdust in Brooklyn, NY