About
music + nature
Wild Muse Arts grew from the vision that music, flowers, and the natural world can be experienced as parts of the same living ecosystem. Our main concerts take place at Faraway Farm Alpacas, a sustainable farm in Upper Westchester. The alpacas provide compost that nourishes the flowers, which become the living installations framing our performances. The flowers directly echo the themes of each concert, reflect the seasons, and remind audiences that art is inseparable from its environment.
Programming Philosophy
Our programming draws on ecological concert themes that invite audiences to listen differently:
Elements & Natural Forces: Works inspired by earth, water, storms, forests, and sky, from Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony to contemporary reflections on the environment.
Climate Change & the Anthropocene: Music that responds to the urgency of our times, exploring the crisis of rising seas, shifting seasons, fragile ecosystems.
Women and Underrepresented Voices: Centering composers historically overlooked while integrating canonic works through an ecological lens.
Acoustic Ecology & Soundscapes: Contemporary works that integrate nature’s own sounds or evoke them through instrumental color.
Our concerts are designed to be both accessible and thought-provoking, placing historical works in dialogue with contemporary voices. Programs run about 65–70 minutes without intermission. Each program balances canonic pieces with less familiar works, creating a meaningful experience for both newcomers and seasoned listeners.
Equally important is how our music is shared:
Chamber music is at the heart of our programming to reflect collaboration and dialogue between voices, much like an ecosystem in balance.
Solo works highlight the unique timbres of each instrument, which gives space for individual expression.
Introductions and program notes guide listeners into the music’s world. Each piece is introduced from the stage, and extended program notes are available digitally to deepen the experience.
Wild Muse Concerts is not only thematically ecological, but puts sustainability into practice. Our host, Faraway Farm Alpacas, is a “green” venue that is sustainably operated (rotational grazing, composting, powered by renewable energy), while our micro-flower farm is pesticide-free, planted with native species, and cut-to-sell in a way that prioritizes pollinators and birds. Together, the farm and flowers create a living environment where music and art can flourish alongside nature.
About the Farm
High on a hilltop in the historic Hudson Valley, Faraway Farm Alpacas has been in the Blumberg family since 1951. Today, owners Leda Blumberg and Steve Cole continue the farming tradition, tending their award-winning huacaya alpacas and Icelandic horses.
Leda and Steve are committed to keeping this enchanting property a sustainable working farm, sharing their love of alpacas while producing luxurious homegrown yarn and a wonderful selection of alpaca clothing.
Just 40 miles north of New York City, Faraway Farm has become a destination for photographers, artists, and visitors alike. Faraway Farm serves as the primary venue for Wild Muse Arts; concerts are held in the historic barn, whose foundation was built from native stone hauled from the forest by two dappled-gray draft horses.
About the Founder
Dr. Kathryn Felt is a pianist and educator whose work integrates performance, research, and advocacy. She has performed at leading venues including Lincoln Center and Koerner Hall, and with ensembles such as the Delaware Symphony, The Juilliard Orchestra, Reading Symphony Orchestra, and New World Symphony. Dedicated to amplifying underrepresented voices, she serves on the board of the International Alliance for Women in Music. She is the author of a recent article on protofeminist aesthetics in the piano works of Mélanie Bonis and presented this research at the 2025 Joint Annual Meeting of the American Musicological Society (AMS) and the Society for Music Theory (SMT). She holds degrees from Rice University (BM), The Juilliard School (MM in Collaborative Piano), and Rutgers University (DMA in Piano Performance, under the tutelage of the late John Perry).
As Lecturer at Rutgers University, she brings her passion for music history and performance to the classroom. Beyond the piano, she founded Wild Muse Flowers in 2023, a Bronx-based floral design studio and cut-flower farm. Wild Muse Arts grew from this synthesis of music and ecology, bringing these worlds together to present concerts at Faraway Farm Alpacas.
