On Land: An Evening with Author Laura Poppick & Composer Ben Cosgrove

Author Laura Poppick and composer Ben Cosgrove work in different mediums, but are both deeply fascinated by landscapes and the stories held within them.

We hope you can join us for a cross-disciplinary evening of words and music exploring these terrestrial narratives: Laura will read selections from her new book, Strata: Stories from Deep Time, and Ben will play selections from his catalog of original instrumental music inspired by geography and place. Together, they will offer a layered performance that weaves together meditations on change over different timescales, movement and impermanence, and the malleability of land, water, and geology.

Presented by Mechanics' Hall, Momentum Conservation, & PRINT: A Bookstore

Thursday, September 11 at 7:00 PM (doors 6:30 PM), approximately 60 minutes.

Tickets are $15 for Mechanics' Hall Members, $20 for General Admission, & $35 for Reserved Seating. There is a $5 surcharge the day of the performance.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

is a traveling composer-performer whose music explores themes of landscape, place, and environment. Described by the Boston Globe as “a sonic plein-air painter… [using] his piano as a paintbrush,” Ben has performed in every U.S. state except for Delaware, collaborated with groups ranging from rock bands to research scientists, contributed music to several radio and film projects (including the recent Ken Burns documentary The American Buffalo), and held residencies and fellowships with institutions including NASA, the National Park Service, the National Forest Service, Harvard University, Middlebury College, the Schmidt Ocean Institute, and the Sitka Center for Art & Ecology.

Ben's music has been called "beautiful and fascinating" (The Maine Edge), "deeply impressive" (Independent Clauses), and "immediately evocative and fully arresting... brim[ming] with technical mastery and emotional capital" (Seven Days). His latest record, Bearings, a collection of improvisation-based music that reflects upon the relationship between movement and place, was named one of the top albums of 2023 by Sound of Boston, who in their review described Ben as "a master of painting sonic portraits of curious, unexpected places."

is a Portland-based science and environmental journalist whose stories have appeared in the New York Times, Scientific American, National Geographic, and elsewhere. Her debut book, (W.W. Norton), provides context for modern environmental change by exploring four other moments of global transformation in Earth's deep geologic history.

PARKING & TRANSPORTATION

The Greater Portland Metro’s Congress & Casco Street Stop is directly in front of our building, served by routes 1, 7, 8, and 9B.

Parking is available at the Arts District Garage, which has entrances on Casco and Brown Street, with a rate of $5 per hour. Metered street parking is available on Congress, Casco, Cumberland, Free Street, and other nearby streets. Free hourly street parking is available between Parris and Alder Street.

ACCESSIBILITY

To enter our building, patrons will need to navigate a single step. There is a wheelchair-accessible elevator and a ramp available upon request.

If you need accessibility accommodations/questions please contact us at [email protected] or 207-773-8396.

Host or Publisher Mechanics' Hall (Maine)