Nu Mu 3: The Land of Mu | Spontaneous Music and Art Festival

Festival opens with Action Painting to Live Music as part of Brattleboro’s Gallery Walk on August 2 from 5 to 8pm, and extends through Saturday August 31.

Nu Mu 3, The Land of Mu is coming to Brattleboro’s 118 Elliot every weekend in August. Nu Mu 3, The Land of Mu is a Spontaneous Music and Art Festival that combines great performances by world renowned visiting artists with opportunities for local musicians to showcase their music. All events are free, but a $20 donation is suggested at the door. Organized by musician Jeff Lederer in collaboration with John Loggia of 118 Elliot, Nu Mu 3 performances range from new music rooted in the Jazz tradition to the ‘way-out’ and sonically experimental.

The lost continent of Mu

The Land of Mu is a mythological continent in the Pacific, much like Atlantis. The concept was best put forth by author James Churchwood (1851-1936) in a series of books about Mu. “The people of Mu were telepathic astral travelers and artistic spiritualists who lived in harmony,” Loggia said. “This festival and our music aspire to bring people together in a similar way and add a fun literary component to the happenings.” The original books by Churchwood will be on display at 118 Elliot.

Jeff Lederer is a Saxophonist/clarinetist/composer who has been included in the Downbeat Critics’ and Readers’ Poll each year since 2014. Jeff and his wife Mary LaRose, who is also an amazing vocalist and artist, and their two children, have been part-time residents in a rustic cabin in Guilford for over 30 years. Nu Mu is planned around their annual August sojourn to Southern Vermont.

The Festival opens with Action Painting to Live Music, during Brattleboro’s Gallery Walk on Friday August 2 from 5 to 8pm. All members of the community are invited to join in the creative process. The idea is simple: musicians play while painters paint. Art Supplies will be supplied. Musicians should bring their own instruments. The art created during this event will remain on the walls for the duration of the festival as the August exhibition at 118 Elliot.

Our second weekend features Jeff Lederer and Mary LaRose with Joe Fonda, Michael Rabinowitz, and Harvey Sorgen on Saturday August 10 at 7pm. Joe was “Bassist of the Year” in 2023 according to the New York Jazz Record. Saturday’s show will be what Loggia calls “top shelf stuff,” a high energy full spectrum exploration of what contemporary Jazz can be. On Sunday, August 11 at 7pm, Mary LaRose will lead the same group with her extraordinary vocalizing.

On the weekend of August 16 -18, Nu Mu hosts a festival within a festival. XFEST is a creative artist’s jamboree. More than 50 regional musicians, dancers, multimedia artists, and poets will run creative programming throughout the weekend. Many of them will be camped out at Fort Dummer State Park or placed in the homes of local hosts. Organized by vocalist Dei Christ. Check out their website xfestma.com. This weekend will be chock full of outrageous experimentation and cross pollination.

Another great show in the Jazz tradition will be on Friday August 23 at 7pm. The show will consist of teachers and students who were part of the Bennington College Music and Black Music Division program. In the early 70s legendary musicians and Bennington music faculty members Bill Dixon and Milford Graves guided their students through a cultural awakening using music as a guide. Organized by Vance Provey, the ensemble will consist of Vance with Stephen Haynes, Arthur Brooks, Eric Zinman, Glynnis Lomon, Alby Balgochian, Dennis Warren, David Bindman and Paul Austerlitz. Each one of these musicians alone is worth leaving the house for. Together, they will blow paisley swirls of sonic euphoria all across Mu.
https://curriculum.bennington.edu/fall2024/2024/03/25/black-music-black-music-division -a-50-year-retrospective/
https://libraryguides.bennington.edu/blackmusic/faculty

Nu Mu will also cross paths with the Sonic Circus Music Festival on August 24th in Marlboro, VT.  See soniccircusfestival.com for details TBA. 

The last weekend will be a mixed bag of Free Jazz and inspired movement organized by the incredible Bonnie Kane featuring Ayumi Ashito, Eric Plaks, Aron Namenwirth, Tom Law and Claire Elizabeth Barrett. The weekend will begin with a special concert streamed live from Holyoke Media in Holyoke MA on Thursday, August 29. The next day, Friday August 30, those artists will bring their sounds to 118 Elliot for further explorations of the Land of Mu.

Nu Mu 3 will end with a Sonic BBQ, a joyous open jam for all Saturday August 31 from 6 to 8pm at 118 Elliot.

John Loggia lives in Brattleboro, co-directs 118 Elliot and is a drummer, filmmaker and visual artist. He helped produce the recent critically acclaimed film “Fire Music” (Criterion Channel) and is deeply involved in the experimental music scene in New York and New England.

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