Looking for a new way to celebrate Earth Day? Why not embrace an eco-friendly “reduce-reuse-recycle” message with a free concert. At 6 p.m. on April 22, 2025, the Morrison Center will host Scrap Arts Music, a Canadian-born and percussion-based performing arts company. The group takes salvaged materials and transforms them through welding, sculpture, and choreography to create beautiful music. Think STOMP, Blue Man Group, or what founders Gregory Kozak and Justine Murdy call “Dr. Seuss meets Animal” – a madcap orchestra of invented instruments. But, these instruments aren’t just found objects played like instruments. They’re one-of-a-kind creations made from literal scrap that double as music-makers and artistic sculptures.
Since the 1990s, Kozak’s musical training and Murdy’s architectural knowledge have collided with the high-quality construction salvage and cast-offs from Vancouver’s massive building boom to upcycle choice scrap, resulting in nearly 150 large-scale, mobile, sculptural instruments designed to be tunable and suitable for repeat performances around the world.
Scrap Arts Music has taken its high-energy and wholly athletic artistry global, performing in 16 countries over five continents, including the 2010 Winter Olympics Closing Ceremony. Now, they are touring their latest production called “Children of Metropolis.” Set in a retro-futuristic world, the story follows Grigor on a quest to save his beloved city, encountering sea flunky sprites, underground snakes and a charismatic cat-astronaut along the way.