the biophony project
Cherry Esplanade
9/18/2021 / 1pm-4pm / Brooklyn Botanical Garden - 990 Washington Avenue (40.6689426,-73.9645777)
Biomes Performed
Meet the Artists
Chanan Ben Simon is a vocalist, composer and a multimedia artist, born in Jerusalem, currently Brooklyn based. Chanan’s work combines voice, sound, visuals, installation art and new media. Chanan creates short films, releases recorded music (as 'Ben Simone'), writes music for different ensembles, performs music by contemporary composers, creates audio/visual installations, creates music for film and much more. He holds a B.mus in composition from the music academy in Jerusalem and an MFA in performance and interactive media from Brooklyn College.
Sarah Beth Pfeifer is an NYC based singer/actor/director/artist. Member of the Chor since 2017, past performances include Experiments in Form and The Desire/Divinity Project. She recently made her Broadway debut in The Lightning Thief as Clarisse and others. Other notable performance credits include The Lightning Thief (Lucille Lortel), Goldstein (The Actors Temple), and Legally Blonde (National Tour). An eternal student, SB is a proud member of Marisa’s Libero Canto based vocal studio, and the Freeman Studio for actors. She feels so very lucky to be a part of the heart centered, deeply felt, intensely collaborative group of humans that is the Constellation Chor!
Marisa Michelson is a singer, improviser, composer, and the founder/director of the collective Constellation Chor | An Immersion in Voice, Movement and Spirit. Constellation Chor has been in residence at the historic Judson Memorial Church, Spectrum, Pioneer Works and National Sawdust. The Chor’s collaborators include Claire Chase, Sarah Hennies, Ash Fure, the New York Philharmonic, the Kitchen, Heartbeat Opera, Harvard Art Lab, Maria Popova, Paola Prestini. Marisa lives, works and teaches singing in New York City and Hudson, NY.
Maya Carney is a Brooklyn born and based, vocalist and trombonist. Throughout the years she’s worked with many artists including DJ Serge Negri, Arturo O’Farrill, the Constellation Chor and many others. Maya primarily roots her practice in her spirituality, letting her music act as a form of release and personal expression before a performative act. One of her goals inside of her practice is to recognize, access and release through her source. This is something Maya is always trying to develop and learn from both individually and through collaborations. She views her voice as an entire instrument, exploring and manipulating sound utilizing her entire range to find new ways of expressing.
Jen Anaya (they/them) is a theater/music/art/ritual space maker, doula and energy healer from the desert of Yavapaiv Apache, Cocopah and O'odham land. They have created for and performed in rock bands, web series, art installations, plays, operas, dance theater, films, solo shows, healing rituals and musicals all over LenapeHoking, Turtle Island and beyond. The intersection of art, expansion and healing is where Jen's passion and curiosity are most alive.
Kalli Siamidou is a greek pontian dancer, choreographer and performer based in New York City. She is interested in exploring many different dance forms from studio born styles like ballet and modern to more folklore like salsa and greek folk dances. She has been a core member of Constellation Chor since 2016.
Nikko is an NYC-based writer and performer, a recipient of a 2016 Jonathan Larson grant, and an O’Neill Music Theater Conference Finalist. Projects include Nikola Tesla Drops The Beat (w/ Benjamin Halstead, Adirondack Theater Festival); Start Again (Musical Theater Factory); ElseWhere (Town Stages) and In Pursuit of Magic (Kennedy Center Millenium Stage). Writer’s residencies at Village Theater Festival, Pace New Musicals, the Johnny Mercer Songwriters Project, Catwalk, Songspace, and Goodspeed Writers Colony.
Shawn Shafner (he/they) is an artist, educator and facilitator. As founder of The People's Own Organic Power (POOP) Project, Shawn catalyzes conversations about sustainable sanitation for every pooper - and the planet we poop on. Look for his book Know Your Shit on shelves Feb 2022, and find more at www.thePOOPproject.org/ When he’s not pooping, Shawn teaches meditation and mindful creativity, leads movement classes through the lineage of choreographer Tamar Rogoff, sings with Marisa Michelson’s Constellation Chor Ensemble, and facilitates arts-integrated workshops for learners of all ages.
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“Biophony" is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.