LISTEN TO THE LAND:
ENCOUNTERS WITH NATURE AND ART
A Token Creek Special Event

Saturday, August 25, 2012 • 3:00 – 6:00 p.m.
(Rain date: Sunday, August 26, 2012)

In this special event that opens our season, a panel of experts will discuss the unique natural features, resources and opportunities of the Harbison farm in preparation for an exclusive guided walking tour of the property. Historic photos and maps will depict conservation efforts on-going since the 1930’s when Dan and Alice Pedersen (parents of Rose Mary Harbison) began their stewardship of the farm. Music and readings related to the land evoke the art-nature connection, and a reception concludes the event.

Limited participation

James T. Addis, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (retired)
Stephen Glass, The Restoration Ecology Lab, UW-Madison Arboretum (retired)
William R. Jordan III, Director, New Academy for Nature and Culture
Rose Mary Harbison, Artistic Co-Director, Token Creek Chamber Music Festival
Scot Stewart, District Fisheries Manager, So. Wisconsin, Wisconsin DNR
Kurt Welke, Dane County Fisheries Manager, Wisconsin DNR

Note to participants: This event presents a light hiking option. Participants should be prepared to walk at a moderate pace on level ground, for up to 15 continuous minutes, with an eventual total walking time of 45 minutes. We will walk on wide, well-mowed paths, some of which may have a few uneven patches. We recommend long pants, long sleeves, suitable walking shoes, hats and other sun protection, and insect repellant for ticks and mosquitos. We will provide bottled water.

A Sense of Place:
Restoration Ecology in the Token Creek Watershed
August 25, 2012

TOKEN CREEK, WISC. – For just one day, the public is invited to an exclusive guided walking tour of a pristine private farm adjacent to the Token Creek County Park. With its segment and tributary of Token Creek – an important fishery and major source of water for the Madison lakes – this hundred-acre tract is a strategically located green space in a rapidly developing area. Originally purchased by Alice and Dan Pedersen in the 1930s, passed on to their daughter Rose Mary Harbison, this property has been lovingly stewarded by a single family for most of the last century.

Now for the first time, the Token Creek Festival has organized, as part of its annual summer music series, a special program to introduce visitors to the property and to share some ideas about prospects for its future as a green space. On August 25th, a panel of restoration ecologists knowledgeable about this site will talk about its water and land resources, natural features, anthropological and cultural history, and its prospects for the future. Interested participants will be invited on a 50-minute guided walking tour of the property, which will include surprise encounters with art along the way - visual, literary and musical. The program culminates in a brief performance, with a reception and continuing informal discussion with presenters.

Speakers include James T. Addis, fisheries and hydrology expert from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Stephen Glass, founder of the Restoration Ecology Lab and formerly at the UW Arboretum, and William Jordan, the leading intellectual visionary of “restoration ecology” and director of the New Academy for Nature and Culture. Topics to be covered include the ecology of the Token Creek property, possibilities for restoration efforts, its role as part of Wisconsin’s important water resources, our essential role in the stewardship of this land, and a chance to imagine its future.

The natural and cultural histories of the Token Creek property form a rich legacy that includes two generations of experiments in organic farming, nearly a quarter century of music festivals and forums, an ever-expanding community of participants, and the land itself. All of this presents a unique opportunity for serious conservation efforts that will enhance the local environment while exploring the role the arts have to play in the urgent task of reconnecting with nature.

The Token Creek Festival continues through the week with the concerts that are typical of the Festival’s main fare. The annual jazz club this year offers a 75th anniversary tribute to George Gershwin, and the Festival concludes with a program of serenades by Bach, Harbison and Mozart, music that addresses the season themes of place, conservation, and restoration. Galleries this year will exhibit the people and places of Token Creek.

All events will be held at the Festival Barn, 4037 Highway 19, near the hamlet of Token Creek, just west of Sun Prairie. Ample parking is available, and (except for the walking tour on August 25) the venue is indoors and air-conditioned.

Tickets range from $30-40, with a limited number of $10 student tickets available for each event. The venue is invitingly small, and reservations are recommended. For more information: 608-241-2525, www.tokencreekfestival.org, or P.O. Box 55142, Madison, WI 53705.

The season also features the release of a new CD: Jazz 2011: Burton Lane and Jule Styne, a live recording of last season’s jazz session. This new title, and all other Token Creek CDs, will be available at Festival concerts and also via the website.