Submissions for scores and applications for guest artists are open on our website! Click here if you have a score you'd like us to play for our New Music Festival on October 15th-16th, 2022, and click here if you're interested in performing a 30-minute set on one of the concerts. The Festival will feature three concerts in downtown Eugene, from the Park Blocks to the First Christian Church and the New Zone Gallery. The Light and Art show in the Park Blocks will draw on the energy of ArtCity's BEAM, with amplified music and an interactive light exhibit for audience members. Our audience participation concert draws trained and untrained musicians alike into a collective sound-making space at the First Christian Church, and our concert at New Zone will set pieces for the ensemble in an inviting visual atmosphere. The Call for Scores closes June 1st, and the Guest Artist Application closes July 1st.
AMBIENT ECOLOGY
Sponsored by City of Eugene Art in the Parks
ALL CONCERTS AT MAURIE JACOBS PARK
EDME’s Ambient Ecology Festival seeks to create a dialogue between music, nature, and human experience by presenting calming soundscapes within Maurie Jacobs Park. We have presented three 90 minute-long shows, one each on May 30st, June 6th, and June 13th of 2026, and plan to continue the series in 2026. Works by the deeply influential 20th century composer Pauline Oliveros will be a throughline for all shows in this series. Oliveros’ concept of Deep Listening serves as inspiration for this project. According to Oliveros, “Deep Listening explores the difference between the involuntary nature of hearing and the conscious nature of listening. The practice includes bodywork, sonic meditations, and interactive performance, as well as listening to the sounds of daily life, nature, one’s own thoughts, imagination, and dreams. It cultivates a heightened awareness of the sonic environment, both external and internal, and promotes experimentation, improvisation, collaboration, playfulness, and other creative skills vital to personal and community growth.”
Each concert in the series opens with one of Oliveros’ Sonic Meditations, during which we invite the audience to participate alongside the musicians.
We hope to introduce intentional audience members and passers-by both to unique musical styles outside a traditional concert hall, including an array of composers and performers from diverse backgrounds, such as non-white, LGBTQ, female, and gender-nonconforming individuals. Performing at Maurie Jacobs near the Willamette River, we invite people to listen to both the music and the environment it is placed in, including its anthropocentric setting. We hope people will hum, sing, move, or otherwise participate with the music, especially as part of the Sonic Meditations. We will provide programs at each concert to help people learn more about the music, the park, and the Willamette River. The hope is for the Series to annually recur every spring.
The Ambient Ecology Series seeks to create a cultural exchange through music that inspires dialogue and wonder. These qualities are fundamental to experimental music. We hope that stumbling into the outer edges of musical performance -- such as ambient, drone, and contemporary classical -- on a Saturday afternoon in the park will introduce passers-by to new musical styles. Folks who already know these genres will have the rare treat of hearing them performed live amidst the beauty of one of Eugene’s loveliest parks. One of our goals is to create a vibrant atmosphere, transforming Maurie Jacobs Park into a space where people can relax and enjoy curious musical experiences–a distinctive atmosphere that cannot be replicated in a concert hall, let alone through speakers or headphones.
2026 Concerts
May 30st, 5:30pm
EUGENE DIFFICULT MUSIC ENSEMBLE
Featuring Works by
Pauline Oliveros - Aphex Twin - Matti Weisberg - Luis Fernando Amaya - Adrian Cervantez Mendez - Jayne Cronin - Ellie Jakes - Gia Margaret - C418
June 6th, 5:30pm
GUEST MUSICIANS
Featuring Performances by
K O T A - Josh Hydeman - New Agency
June 13th, 5:30pm
GUEST MUSICIANS
Featuring Performances by
Gabie Strong - D.S.P. Witch - JEC
K O T A
is the solo project of Dakota Zitterkopf,
a trombonist and improviser.
JOSH HYDEMAN
is an Oregon-based interdisciplinary artist recognized for his
photography and sound art. His creative journey began at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts and Tufts University in the early 2000s, where he developed a foundation in experimental media.
Initially focused on sound performance, Hydeman spent years touring the United States and recording albums. His transition to photography was sparked by a transformative moment while recording sounds in a lava cave in Washington.
Today, his practice centers on the hidden landscapes of the underground and the wildlife that inhabits them. Hydeman photographs and records the sounds of bats, abandoned mines and caves, blending scientific fieldwork with a distinct artistic lens.
NEW AGENCY
is an Oregon-based trio made up of Ranier Collins,
Evan MacFarland, and Henry Rahe. Formed in 2024, the group draws on a shared classical background alongside influences from sound collage to indietronica. Their work combines synth-heavy soundscapes with viola, French horn, guitar, and vocals. Their releases include the EP Radio Saints (2024) and the album Camp Miracle (2025), which lean toward a more energetic, electronic pop sound.
GABIE STRONG
is a conceptual artist exploring spatial constructions
of sonic degeneration, drone and decay as a means to improvise new arrangements of self-reflexive meaning. Strong uses sound, radio broadcasting, performance, environmental installation and video as mediums for experimentation.
Strong teaches undergraduate and graduate level art, with an emphasis on embodied placemaking and community art strategies. Strong additionally works as a community arts organizer creating accessible spaces for community radio broadcasts, festivals, and exhibitions. Strong holds a MFA in Studio Art from UC Irvine, a M. Arch from Sci-Arc, and a BA in Art from UCLA.
Her work has been presented by Lines of Flight NZ, Dragon's Eye Recordings, EPOCH Gallery, The Tapeworm, LAMOA DS#3 at Commonweath & Council, LAND AND SEA OAKLAND+BAMPFA, The UCLA Hammer Museum, MOCA, amongst others. Strong has recently been awarded sound artist residencies at The Space Program SF and Bemis.
D.S.P. MYSTIC
is a new project by Portland-based artist Bagonia.
D.S.P.M. uses site-specific techniques like field recording, spatialized feedback, audience participation, and network devices to access a mystical space of creation and co-creation; exploring what it means to be an artist, a technologist, and an audience. DSPM is the evolution of a set of technologies assembled to create an on site experimentation toolkit capable of cracking the third wall and enabling the listener/viewer to transcend time and space. DSPM aims to build instruments and experiences that bring the power of creation to everyone. Begonia is known as a world renowned dance music artist and dj, as well as a fixture in the diy american noise scene. She is honored to debut this project at this years' Ambient Ecology festival! To learn more check out her blog at begonia420.substack.com
JAKE CHAFFEE
is a bassist, visual artist, and ambient producer based
in Eugene, OR. With roots in Southern California and Texas, they have performed widely as a freelance musician and released several projects under the name JEC. Known for their immersive ambient livestreams and a joyful, expressive stage presence, Jake blends technical skill with a deep love of musical exploration. JEC's most recent project is titled "three days and." and features tracks from previous livestreams as well as tracks produced for the EP itself.
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