While She Sleeps Illuminated Songbook
An introduction to the origin, evolution and future of The Songbook
While She Sleeps is a musical and visual art project created in collaboration with songwriter and musician Kenna Burima and visual artist Bri Strong.
It began as a collection of journal entries written while working through postpartum depression after the birth of my daughter.
I would sit at the kitchen table and write for hours. At some point, I realized what I was writing were in fact songs and so I moved to the piano, and sit in the dark…waiting. The music slowly began to emerge; all unfolding while my daughter slept.
Finally, the songs coalesced into a collection, a song-cycle if you will, that I then notated and shared with long-time collaborator, universal conspirator and dear friend, visual artist Bri Strong, who illuminated the notation pages and designed what is the While She Sleeps Illuminated Songbook.
The songbook stood as the only physical manifestation of the music where audiences were encouraged to learn and perform the songs themselves until the release of the audio album in spring of 2023. The album is now available for download and purchase through various platforms.