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. A cultivation of each members’ artistic vision, the resulting sonic experience centers a unique perspective on musical form and play.
Having completed multiple USA Tours that included performances at Roulette Intermedium and Lincoln Center, university masterclasses, community outreach workshops, and site-specific improvisations, The Forest released their first studio recording featuring special guests Warren Smith (percussion) and J. D. Parran (multiple wind instruments), in 2024. Their work has received the support of a Jazz Roads Creative Residency grant, a residency at the Univeristy of Illinois, and multiple grants from the Brooklyn Arts Council.
Their latest project, Coyote Makes a World, in collaboration with the Spokane vocalist Lone Eagle, will debut in 2025.
Testimonials about The Forest:
“The Forest’s residency was a perfect blend of hands-on, interactive playing and an opportunity for the students to observe master professional musicians at work. It was so inspiring to interact with this diverse, multi-generational group of percussionists in performance and workshop. They engaged important yet rarely-heard historical music (Ed Blackwell/Don Cherry/after Max Roach and M’Boom) in a new creation imagined by Andrew Drury and realized through the original improvisational voices of each musician.”
- Dr. Bonnie Whiting. Chair of Percussion Studies, University of Washington.
“The Forest projects a wide spectrum sound both sonically and culturally. Through their music and live performances, The Forest projects each musician’s diverse and excellent musical perspectives in a way that gives you hope for a more democratic America. There’s space for everyone and the result is beautiful. This is a way forward.”
- Cristian Amigo, Ph.D. Sound Design Faculty, School of Theater, CalArts.
“The Forest provided the students with an engaging, dynamic, and deeply musical experience, providing students an accessible window into the complexity and beauty of improvised music. Conversations ranged from topics of collective group-think/decision making to the exploration of space, composition, the social dimensions of music, and beyond.”
- Stephanie Richards, Music Professor, University of California, San Diego
LEAH BOWDEN marimba
ANDREW DRURY drum set
special guest
WARREN SMITH vibraphone
ANDREW DRURY videography/editing
JON ROSENBERG audio production
Additional links:
Debut album review in New York City Jazz Record
Additional footage from The Forest at Roulette feat. Warren Smith And J.D. Parran:
Leah Bowden 