A fantastical creature. A forgotten history. A new musical world coming to life.
Left: GRAMMY®-nominated bassoonist Martin Kuuskmann; right: Composer Lembit Beecher
In the Making is a special project from A Far Cry that brings stories to life through an immersive multimedia concert experience and professional recording.
At its heart is a new commission by composer Lembit Beecher: Land of the Northern Frog
Part family myth, part imagined folklore, Land of the Northern Frog traces the story of Beecher’s great-grandfather August Kiiss, who traveled the Estonian countryside collecting folk songs.
Performed by GRAMMY®-nominated bassoonist Martin Kuuskmann and A Far Cry, the piece imagines August’s journey continuing into the mythical underworld, where he encounters the legendary Põhja Konn — the Northern Frog — both monster and protector in Estonian lore.
Tauno Kangro’s 2013 sculpture of Põhja konn (aka the Northern Frog), on the outskirts of Viimsi in Estonia.
Interwoven with projections, archival family recordings, and live narration, the program also includes:
Beecher’s The Conference of the Birds (an 2017 A Far Cry commission)
A new arrangement for string orchestra of Beecher’s One Hundred Years Grows Shorter Over Time
Together, these works invite us to reflect on ancestry, migration, myth, and the stories we carry forward.
Music from this performance will be professionally recorded by Immersive Music Project at WGBH Studios in Boston and released on Crier Records, ensuring that this work lives far beyond a single evening.
Why This Project Matters
New music does not come into being fully formed. It is shaped through dialogue between composer and performers, through revision and rehearsal, through technical experimentation, and through shared curiosity.
In the Making makes that journey visible.
By supporting this project, donors play a direct role in commissioning new work, sustaining creative partnerships, and ensuring that the music is preserved through professional recording. Support underwrites composer fees, soloist engagement, multimedia production, rehearsal time, recording engineering, and album release.
Just as August Kiiss once preserved folk songs for future generations, In the Making preserves new music born in our time.
Cover of 1908 August Kiis’ transcriptions
August Kiis’ transcription, used in 2nd movement of Land of the Northern Frog.
Sponsorship Opportunities
Help Bring In the Making to Life! Supporters of In the Making play a direct role in commissioning, producing, recording, and releasing new music.
Leadership Gifts of $20,000
Everything outlined below, plus...
Producer credit on the album, to be released on Crier Records in 2028
Exclusive access to attend recording sessions with Lembit and the Criers at WGBH Fraser Studio on Thursday, April 23, Friday, April 24, and Sunday, April 26
Sponsorship of $10,000
Everything outlined below, plus...
Dinner with Lembit Beecher, and Crier curators for this project
Named acknowledgement inscribed on the new commission: Lembit Beecher's Land of the Northern Frog
Sponsorship of $5,000
Exclusive access to attend open rehearsals with Lembit and the Criers at BYSO Youth Center for Music on Monday, April 20 through Wednesday, April 22.
4 complimentary tickets to Land of the Northern Frog concert at WGBH Fraser Studio on Saturday, April 25 (audience capacity of 100).
Special acknowledgement in the A Far Cry website and in printed materials
In addition, we plan to acknowledge donors at any level who help bring this project to life in album and concert materials.
For more information, please contact Grace Kennerly, Executive Director of A Far Cry.
