Trees celebrated through music at Chico State

Trees will be celebrated in a musical portrait at Laxson Auditorium tonight.

“Treelogy” is a musical showcase with California's Redwood, Sequoia and Joshua trees featuring Billy Childs, Steven Mackey, Gabriella Smith and Delirium Musicum.

“Treelogy” is a celebration and a call to action to save California's beloved and iconic trees, according to the Chico Performances website. Inspired by California's epic wildfires chronicled by The New York Times journalist John Branch, Thor Steingraber and Soraya artist-in-residence, Etienne Gara, have created a musical response to the fires and a special tribute to these precious trees.

Famous composers Billy Childs, Steven Mackey, and Gabriella Smith, all with deep California roots of their own, have each composed original music for this three-part concert. This unprecedented, multi-disciplinary effort will emphasize the pride of California and the memories of every family's national park vacation.

Tickets can be purchased at www.chicostatetickets.com through the university box office. Tickets are $40. The performance will be held at Laxson Auditorium this evening at 7:30 p.m. Tickets can also be purchased through the box office by phone at 898-6333 or in person at West Third and Chestnut streets.

You can also meet the “Treelogy” composers for a free discussion on how each of their pieces came about. This is called “Treelogy: A Conversation with the Composers” as part of the New Music Symposium. The discussion is free and open to the public. It will be held Wednesday, the day after the show, at 10:30 a.m. at the Rowland-Taylor Recital Hall located at Performing Arts Center 134 at Chico State.