Magpie: Science + History = Music!
About
Celebrate the Earth’s environment, history, and culture with award-winning musical duo Magpie’s engaging and uplifting music. Terry Leonino and Greg Artzner have captivated audiences for over 30 years, weaving guitar, mandolin, concertina, and harmonica with rich harmonies and sign language. Meet the Chesapeake Bay’s regional treasure in Tales of the Blue Crab. Discover the remarkable diversity of global and cultural holiday traditions in Season of Light. Commemorate the struggle and rejoice in the triumphs of Battle Cry of Freedom: Civil War to Civil Rights. Honor our Living Planet 1 now and again with Living Planet 2 (NEW!) to learn about the Earth’s amazing biodiversity. Performance highlights include Pete Seeger’s Clearwater Festival and Lincoln Center.
Terry Leonino and Greg Artzner began to play music together in Kent, Ohio in September of 1973. They chose the name Magpie for their band, a name which grew in personal significance for them as the years went by. Terry was a student in her senior year at Kent State University in the fall of ’73, and when she graduated the following spring, she and Greg packed Greg’s VW bus and moved to the Washington, DC area. In the years since then, they have traveled and toured extensively, performed in concerts, at folk clubs and festivals around the world, and recorded many times. Greg began to play music in the early sixties as a direct result of the Civil Rights Movement. Terry also began singing at that time and spent many of her childhood summers with her mother’s family in the Deep South, where she witnessed the cruelty of racism and the power of the movement. Terry and Greg continue to reflect on these experiences in their own work in support of the ongoing struggles for civil rights, freedom, justice, and peace.
From the beginning, Terry and Greg’s interests in various musical styles have led them to be eclectic in their repertoire. Magpie has always embraced a musical rainbow, which includes traditional, classic country, swing, blues of the 1920s and 30s, and contemporary songs written by themselves and others. Terry is a gifted singer of jazz and blues in the tradition of Connie Boswell and Billie Holiday but is equally comfortable with traditional folk and contemporary songs. She is also an excellent player of the harmonica, mandolin, fretted dulcimer, and rhythm guitar. Greg, a high baritone vocalist and guitarist, plays a wide range of styles, including ballads, ragtime blues, and swing.
Magpie is well known as a regular performer on Phil Ochs Song Nights, organized by Phil’s sister, Sonny Ochs, since 1984. Over the years, Terry and Greg have also become distinguished for producing programs of music for museums (including the Smithsonian Institution), schools, and other special events. They are master artists with the Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning Through the Arts, and in that capacity, have worked in many residency programs and teacher training workshops, demonstrating their methods for utilizing music effectively as a tool for early childhood education. Terry and Greg have many years of experience working in schools, performing for children and families. They have developed several special school programs for students of all ages, including two on the environment and others on historical themes such as the Great Depression and the 1960s.
Terry and Greg are internationally known as well for their musical work in the environmental movement. Throughout their career, they have devoted a tremendous amount of their time, energy, and music to environmental causes. Their musical work has supported the work of such groups as the National Audubon Society, the National Wildlife Federation, the National Wildlife Refuge System, the National Park Service, and Hudson River Sloop Clearwater. Earth Day 1998 found them performing at Harpers Ferry National Park, where their well-known anthem, “We Belong to the Earth,” was a perfect finale to a speech by President Clinton. They have been featured presenters for statewide environmental education associations around the country.
Artist’s website: Magpie: Terry Leonino & Greg Artzner
Virtual program options available – contact us for more information.
Battle Cry of Freedom: From Civil War to Civil Rights
Interlaced with personal stories of the people, with music from the abolitionist movement and Underground Railroad, and describing hardships of army life and war, songs deal with Mary Brown, wife of Harper’s Ferry John Brown, Harriet Tubman, conductor of Underground Railroad, and express the patriotic fervor that motivated both sides of this conflict.
Icthyomusicology
Songs and stories of the fish, whales, dolphins, crabs, and other marine life that depend on water for their lives. Audience participation.
Living Planet 1 & 2
Celebrate the complex web of life forms that populate the earth – whales to wolves, magpies to macaws, teeming oceans to frozen tundra – and learn how we can help to preserve the earth. For those who have enjoyed Living Planet 1 in the past, Living Planet 2 offers a way to extend learning through new songs and ideas.
Sense of Wonder
Sense of Wonder is a presentation of excerpts from the many writings of Rachel Carson, her books, essays, and articles, intertwined with songs written to elaborate on the themes about which she wrote and that make connections about the issues and concerns for the planet that we are still facing today. The students will sing songs with Magpie and, if time allows, read aloud some of Carson’s writings that inspire us all to protect the birds, fish, and wildlife to which she so clearly dedicated her life, reminding us we can still work to prevent a “silent spring.”
Tales of the Blue Crab
A rollicking, good-time musical telling the life cycle of the Chesapeake Bay’s most famous resident through stories and catchy, sing-along songs.
Single: $845
Back-to-Back: $1,095
AM/PM Split: $1,145
The fees above are for daytime school programs in Maryland, Washington, DC, and northern Virginia only.
Evening, weekend, workshop, and non-school fees differ – please contact us.
Additional travel fees apply.
Magpie was an awesome duo. The students and teachers enjoyed their message and felt it was a worthwhile opportunity for the students. We would like to invite them back for another program next year!
– Teacher, Chesapeake Christian School
This husband and wife team were enthusiastic and engaging. The students learned about the Chesapeake Bay and Blue Crab which is in the 7th grade curriculum this Spring.
– Science Teacher, Southern Middle School (AACPS)
…A wonderfully uplifting and evocative performance … with every visit, you bring an artistry and professionalism that brings life to the very core values we try hard to impart to our students.
– Key School
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Theme | Character/SEL, Green, Language Arts, Social Studies, World Languages |