Watermusic/Dancing on the Trail
Free and open to the public
This summer Triphammer Arts, the Cayuga Waterfront Trail Initiative and the Friends of Stewart Park will once again host Watermusic/Dancing on the Trail at the Stewart Park section of the Cayuga Waterfront Trail. On Friday, July 12, 2019 from 5:30 – 8:30PM, the park will come alive with a spontaneous festival of music and dance, featuring new bands, new songs, and new choreography along with long-time favorite Finger Lakes performers. The dances can be seen, and the music can be heard, from the trail or from the water - so bring your kayak, paddleboard, bicycle, or walking shoes and come on down! This year’s event is sponsored by Ithaca Flair Strategic Communications and by Tompkins Trust Company.
Watermusic/Dancing on the Trail celebrates the natural beauty of Tompkins County’s outdoor spaces as well as the wealth and diversity of artistic talent in the Finger Lakes region. Musicians will perform along the Waterfront Trail and the borders of Cayuga Lake and Fall Creek from 5:30 to 7:30 pm with a Grand Finale performance at the Picnic (Large) Pavilion from 7:30 – 8:30PM. Our successful move to the Stewart Park setting has brought the bands closer together for ease of walking and the enjoyment of multiple performances. It’s accessible for the whole family, with perfect locations for an informal picnic…and it’s free!
For our fourth annual collaboration, we have lined up a great group of musicians, including The Catscratchers (Susan Waterbury and Dave Whiting), NEO Project, Grassanova, Ithaca Ukes, Jonathan and Jai Meyerhoff, Fall Crikkers, Alison Wahl, Mike Ludgate with The Canaan Jazz Trio, classical guitarist David Coester, Rick Manning, Doug Robinson, Harry Aceto, and Steve Stull with the Opera Cowpokes cast and western swing band
Meanwhile, dancers from across central New York will once join the popular Watermusic event. Dancing on the Trail, conceived and directed by Jeanne Goddard and Steve Stull of Triphammer Arts Inc., will reveal dancers in grassy groves near the Picnic (Large) Pavilion and in other locations throughout the park, performing choreographed and improvised movement happenings that celebrate the environment, the season, and the architecture and history of Stewart Park. Performers include Deanna Myskiw and Zane Seubert dance/percussion collaboration, as well as dancer/choreographers Lauren Cranidiotis, Jeanne Goddard, Shayna Grajo, Liz Herman, Janice Kovar, Karen Koyanagi, Risa Lieberwitz, Lesley Tillotson, and others.
The original Watermusic event was initiated by Rick Manning as a festival of music performance on and near the water at the Cayuga Lake inlet. His goal was to give boaters, bicyclists, runners, and walkers, a chance to enjoy dance and music from the water and from the trail, celebrating the wealth of musical talent in the area as well as the accessible natural beauty we enjoy. With support from two Community Celebration grants and other generous sponsorships, Watermusic/Dancing on the Trail has grown to include over forty performers.
The Watermusic/Dancing on the Trail project is made possible in part with funds from the Decentralization Program, a regrant program of the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York legislature and administered by the Community Arts Partnership, with a grant from the Tompkins County Tourism Program, and by generous individual donors.
For a schedule and a map of locations and performers, please visit Triphammer.org closer to the performance date.
