Turkey Named Fred

With Thanksgiving almost upon us, we thought we would share the story of Fred the Turkey, our popular cartoon mascot, with our readers. 

The cartoon was created by one of our talented volunteers to accompany a song created and performed by our in-house band, The Raptor Project.  This is just one of the many songs on the two Raptor Project CDs that can be purchased in our gift shop.

When you visit the World Bird Sanctuary, be sure to take a stroll down our exhibit line and visit with Fred and his harem. 

To see Fred’s cartoon Click Here.

Birds in Concert 2015: Guest Artist Javier Mendoza

The World Bird Sanctuary “Birds in Concert 2015” will launch number 1 in the series on August 6^th with performances by The Raptor Project followed by guest artist Javier Mendoza.

The World Bird Sanctuary’s in-house band, “The Raptor Project” takes to the stage to perform songs from their popular children’s environmental education CDs.  Learn fun and exciting facts about the animals we share our planet with as they share the stage with the Raptor Project!  Audience participation is encouraged! 

Guest artist Javier Mendoza (photo: Gay Schroer)

The Raptor Project will be followed by the immensely popular Javier Mendoza.  Javier has sold over 50,000 albums and has received many honors throughout his career, including “Best Solo Artist”, “Best Male Vocalist” & “Best Pop Artist” by the Riverfront Times Music Awards.  He was also a finalist in the Independent Music Awards and was selected as a Budweiser True Music Artist.  Javier has released 14 albums and shared the stage with such notable artists as Willie Nelson, Los Lobos, The Roots, Ben Folds and many more.  His dedication to creating new and different material and his passion for live performance keeps bringing the fans back again and again. 

Whether he’s playing for 10 people or a crowd of 10,000, Javier makes each show unforgettable.  The physical and emotional energy he delivers is truly amazing and must be experienced to be believed.

Join us for this talent filled kick-off to our 2015 concert series.

WHEN:  August 6^th

TIME:              7:00pm – 8:30 pm

ADMISSION:  FREE

PARKING:  FREE

Prizes and Giveaways by Whole Foods Market 

and St. Louis Sprout & About 

Birds in Concert is sponsored by Ameren Missouri 

Enjoy our stadium seating—or bring your lawn chairs and picnics

For the safety of our animals and our other guests, please no pets.

Birds in Concert 2014

Another season of concerts was a great success at the World Bird Sanctuary.  Special guest musicians Javier Mendoza, Babaloo and a band named Fowl Play filled this year’s schedule. 

The Raptor Project takes to the stage (photo: Gay Schroer)

We had wonderful sponsors that helped us make this event happen.  Ameren Missouri partnered with the World Bird Sanctuary’s education department to sponsor the concerts and many of the other events on our yearly schedule.  Other sponsors were Sprout and About, Whole Foods Market and the Hendrickson insurance group.  We appreciate all the support of these sponsors.

Naturalist JoHanna Burton releases a Harris' Hawk during a musical number (photo: Gay Schroer)

Enthusiastic audiences turned out to enjoy an evening of unique music mixed with flying birds, snake parades and a stage full of bubbles.  The World Bird Sanctuary’s band “The Raptor Project” performed each Thursday night.  Many of the songs played were from the band’s first two CDs, which were produced to benefit the Kathryn G. Favre wildlife hospital.  This year we performed 7 new songs, which were not previously released. 

The band’s soundman, volunteer Rusty Wandall, was able to set up recording equipment to start production of a live album.  Older songs from the first two CDs will be chosen after we listen to the tapes from all the shows to figure out what sounds best.  This will be a long process and we hope to have a digital release of a live CD sometime in the spring of 2015.  We just hope the tapes reflect the great fun we had at the concerts this year.

Thanks again to everyone involved. 

Submitted by World Bird Sanctuary's Sanctuary Manager, Joe Hoffmann    

Get ready to rock with Babaloo!

Babaloo is here!  This Thursday, August 28^th!  Our final Birds in Concert of the 2014 season is the hugely popular Babaloo.  Bring the kids and prepare them to get into the act!

Where else but World Bird Sanctuary could you enjoy free family entertainment that includes not only a concert, but live birds of prey and other animals?

Babaloo performing to a packed house - 2013 (photo: Gay Schroer)

Ready for something different?  Then join us this Thursday night, August 28, for a high energy, often hilarious, musical comedy act for kids (and parents) of all ages.  Be warned—this is not your usual run-of-the-mill kids’ crooner.  Babaloo’s show is fast-paced, totally interactive, full of fun props, hilarious tunes and wacky stunts.  Everybody gets into the act. 

This prize-winning Pied Piper packs more fun than seems possible into every show, and he performs over 300 shows per year.  The Children’s Music Web Awards named him “Best Entertainer”, and he placed 1^st and 2^nd in the world’s largest songwriting contest.  St. Louis Magazine voted him, “The region’s best family entertainer,” and he’s a selected touring performer for the Missouri Arts Council and Mid-America Arts Alliance.

Birds in Concert 2014 is sponsored by Ameren Missouri

Date:  Thursday, August 28, 2014

Time:  7:00 – 8:30 pm (Babaloo starts at 7:00, Raptor Project at 8:00)

Admission and Parking:  FREE!

Snacks and beverages may be purchased from our concession stand—or bring your own picnics and blankets.  Since Babaloo usually draws a full house you may want to bring blankets or folding chairs to take advantage of lawn seating.

Whole Foods Market will have a trail mix station for the kids.

St. Louis Sprout and About will be here with their prize wheel, giveaways and an opportunity to win tickets to Disney on Ice.

Nationwide Hendrixson Agency will be giving away St. Louis Cardinals tickets

Bring your picnics—bring your blankets (or chairs)—but most of all bring your kids and be prepared to be entertained!

For directions Click Here

For the safety of our animals and our other guests, no pets please.

Thursday Night The Raptor Project Plays at Birds in Concert!

Join us on Thursday, August 14^th, from 7pm – 8:30pm while World Bird Sanctuary’s in-house band, “The Raptor Project,” performs songs from their popular children’s environmental education CDs.

The Raptor Project (photo: Gay Schroer) 

Fan favorites from the "Save the Future" and "All Along the Watershed" albums include "Turkey Named Fred," "Roadkill Shiver," "What's the Matter," "The Greatest Possum," and "Animal Noises,"  plus a number of new songs.  Let the kids join in the fun with our dancing DoDo Bird!

The kids join in the fun with our dancing DoDo (photo: Gay Schroer)

Learn fun and exciting facts about the animals we share our planet with as they share the stage with The Raptor Project!  Enjoy the music as our birds swoop just inches over your head.

Whole Foods Market will be there with a trail mix station for the kids.

The Hendrixson Agency will be giving away St. Louis Cardinals tickets.

Mark your calendars!

When:                       Thursday, August 14^th

Where:                     The World Bird Sanctuary Amphitheater

Time:                        7:00 – 8:30 pm

Admission and parking are FREE.  No reservations required.  Just bring yourself and your picnic.  Snack foods will be available.  For directions Click Here .

Birds In Concert is Sponsored by Ameren Missouri

For the safety of our other guests and our animals, please no pets.

Javier Mendoza Returns to WBS Birds In Concert

Join us on Thursday, August 7th, from 7pm – 8:30pm to enjoy Raptor Project music, followed by the ever-popular Javier Mendoza.  Javier has been a staunch supporter of the World Bird Sanctuary, returning every year to perform for our Birds in Concert guests.

Javier has sold over 50,000 albums and has received many honors throughout his career, including “Best Solo Artist”, “Best Male Vocalist” & “Best Pop Artist” by the Riverfront Times Music Awards.  He was also a finalist in the Independent Music Awards and was selected as a Budweiser True Music Artist.

Javier Mendoza returns to the World Bird Sanctuary stage Thursday, 8/7 (photo:  Gay Schroer)

Javier has released 14 albums and shared the stage with such notable artists as Willie Nelson, Los Lobos, The Roots, Ben Folds and many more.  His dedication to creating new and different material and his passion for live performance keeps bringing the fans back again and again.  Whether he’s playing for 10 people or a crowd of 10,000, Javier makes each show unforgettable.  The physical and emotional energy he delivers is truly amazing and must be experienced to be believed.

Rather than focusing primarily on the future, Javier’s music focuses on “Now” and how incredible the journey of life can be if you let it.  For Javier living in the “Now” is about personal growth, working with great musicians, new fans, long time fans, and welcoming all that life has to offer without hesitation. 

Last year Javier was invited by the non-profit “Pan Y Amor” to travel to Bolivia to help raise support for neglected and abused children.  A new short video  has been created to help raise support for this amazing program and Javier produced an original song to accompany the film.  All proceeds from the song “The Forgotten” will be donated to “Pan Y Amor”.

There will also be games and giveaways from:

Whole Foods Market 

St. Louis Sprout & About 

and The Hendrixson Agency 

Don’t miss this outstanding musical performance – Mark your calendars!

Where:              The World Bird Sanctuary amphitheater

When:              Thursday, August 7^th

Time:                        7:00 – 8:30 pm

Admission and parking are FREE.  No reservations required.  Just bring yourself and your picnic.  Snack food will be available.  For the safety of our other guests and our animals, please no pets.

Birds in Concert is sponsored by Ameren Missouri

BIRDS IN CONCERT 2014 SPONSORED BY AMEREN MISSOURI

It’s that time of year again when the World Bird Sanctuary's in-house band, The Raptor Project, is gearing up for our August concert series—Birds in Concert! 

 The Raptor Project often invites the kids to join them onstage during one of their songs

Join us on any Thursday evening in August for some fun and FREE entertainment by The Raptor Project.  They will be performing songs from their popular children’s environmental education CDs while birds fly just inches over the audience’s heads.  Fun songs include “Turkey Named Fred,”  “Roadkill Shiver,”  “Mr. Frog Blues,”  “The Pelican Song,” and others.  “Raptor Project” performances are followed by guest artists such as Javier Mendoza and others.  For more detailed information CLICK HERE. 

 

There will also be games and giveaways from several corporate sponsors.

Whole Foods Market will have a trail mix station for the kids at each concert.

St. Louis Sprout & About will be there on August 7th and August 28th with their prize wheel, giveaways and an opportunity to win tickets to Disney on Ice. 

 The Hendrixson Agency will be giving away St. Louis Cardinals tickets at each concert

Featured artists for our 2014 Birds in Concert series are:

8/7 – Raptor Project followed by Javier Mendoza

8/14 – Raptor Project

8/21 – Raptor Project followed by Fowl Play

8/28 – Babaloo followed by the Raptor Project

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!!

WHEN:  EVERY THURSDAY EVENING IN AUGUST

August 7^th, 14^th, 21^st and 28^th

TIME:  7:00 pm – 8:30 pm

Admission and parking FREE.

No reservations required

Bring your coolers, picnic dinners and lawn chairs if you like.

Snacks and beverages available for purchase

For the safety of our other guests and our birds – no pets please.

Birds in Concert is sponsored by Ameren Missouri 

The Rebounds at Birds In Concert This Thursday

Join us this Thursday, 8/29, for our last Birds in Concert 2013, featuring our guest performers--The Rebounds.

The Rebounds play danceable classic rock.  Their selection of music spans several decades with a solid representation of the 70's and 80's.

Join us Thursday 8/29 for the music of The Rebounds

If you were to ask where The Rebounds are from, you'll get a varied answer.  The four members hail from Robertsville, Eureka, Webster Groves, and St. Charles.  The musicians, Chris Johnson, Gary Allgood, Kyle Walz, and Matt Sokeland, have several decades of musical experience and are known for creating a medley of songs that gives older tunes a fresh sound.  Artists you will hear are Poison, Billy Joel, John Mellenkamp, Van Morrison, The Romantics, Wilson Pickett, Black Crowes, and more.

Important Information
Date: Thursday, August 29th, 2013
Time:  7:00 - 8:30 pm
Admission & Parking:  FREE!

Sponsored by:

Join us for the Raptor Project, followed by The Rebounds.

Spin the Whole Foods Market Wheel during intermission for fun prizes

PLUS, the chance to win a Kindle tablet from Nationwide Hendrixson Agency!




Bring your blankets, picnics and friends, and join us for a fun evening of music.  We hope to see you there!

Food will be available for purchase at our snack table.

For the safety of our animals and other guests, no pets please.

Come Rock With The Raptor Project

The Raptor Project at Birds in Concert this Thursday!

Join us this Thursday for our second Birds in Concert for 2012!  Enjoy two full sets by World Bird Sanctuary's in-house band, The Raptor Project.

World Bird Sanctuary’s in-house band, “The Raptor Project” takes to the stage to perform songs from their popular children’s environmental education CDs.  Fan favorites from the "Save the Future" and "All Along the Watershed" albums include "Turkey Named Fred", "Roadkill Shiver," "What's the Matter," "The Greatest Possum," and "Animal Noises." 

Learn fun and exciting facts about the animals we share our planet with as they share the stage with The Raptor Project!

Date: Thursday, August 9^th, 2012

Time: 7.00 – 8.30pm

Admission & Parking: FREE!

Play the Whole Foods Market prize wheel before the concert, and during intermission, for fun prizes!

Sponsored by Ameren Missouri.

Bring your blankets and picnics and join us for a fun evening of music with friends!

Birds In Concert: The Raptor Project - 8/4

Thursday Night The Raptor Project Plays at Birds in Concert!

Join us on Thursday, August 4^th, from 7pm – 8:30pm while World Bird Sanctuary’s in-house band, “The Raptor Project” performs songs from their popular children’s environmental education CDs.  Fan favorites from the "Save the Future" and "All Along the Watershed" albums include "Turkey Named Fred", "Roadkill Shiver," "What's the Matter," "The Greatest Possum,"  "Animal Noises," and "Don't Be A Do Do."

Kids from the audience join our dancing Do Do onstage

Learn fun and exciting facts about the animals we share our planet with as they share the stage with The Raptor Project!

Admission and parking is FREE.  No reservations required.  Just bring yourself and your picnic.  Concessions will be on sale.

Sponsored by Ameren Missouri

Spring Fever!

Okay, so the weather outside could still be described as frightful, or at least not very pretty. 

It seems a little early for thoughts of flowers and sunshine, but last week a little ray of light happened in my window.  I received a copy of the first mix, or edited version, of the Raptor Project’s upcoming CD, “All Along the Watershed.”  As one of the “Hot Wings” backup singers on the album, I couldn’t wait to hear how all of those long hours in the studio back in December had come together. 

Dana checking out the mixing board

The process of putting together all the individual pieces of a song and an album is really amazing.  Technology allows so much freedom in the ability to mess with one chord or to move something around, little things that in the past would have caused you to have to do that section again (and AGAIN…)  Not that there weren’t a fair amount of redo’s!  For many of the individuals in the band, it was the first time in a studio, making the situation, at times, a little overwhelming.  Standing there in front of your peers, headphones on, staring into the big dark window separating you from them…yikes!  You want to sound perfect every time, hit the nail right on the head, be brilliant!...well, let me tell you, THAT doesn’t always happen.  Luckily, our group is very supportive of each other and great with brainstorming new things to try, so even if you splatter a note here and there, it at least ends in laughing, not crying!

Roger in the studio laying down one of his tracks

There were several recording days in the studio that I couldn’t attend, as I was busy doing programs and such in the Education Department, so there were also chunks of music that had been laid down that I had never heard until yesterday.   There were moments that took my breath away.  There were moments I laughed out loud.  And, I have to admit, there was at least one song that sounded so different with all the components put together, I actually didn’t know what song it was until the singing started.  What an amazing transformation!

So, where does spring fever come into this tale of transformation, you might be asking?  Transformation is what spring is all about, after all, and our much-loved and nurtured album will be making its debut on Saturday, May 1, 2010.  More information about its coming-out-party festivities will be made available as the date nears.  In the meantime, I hope this ray of light whets the appetites of new and old fans alike.  You can expect more funny tales about fabulous animals and more songs that get stuck in your heads for days!  (Those are the parents’ favorites, I know!)  As for me, I have to shove off and finish painting, so that our CD can have a cover as excellent as what’s inside!

Submitted by Dana Lambert, World Bird Sanctuary Naturalist

Raptor Kids

What has 20 legs, hoots like an owl, and howls like a wolf?  Why it's the Raptor Kids of course!

Is that a hoot or a howl?  Find out at our Spring Concert later this year

Shortly before Christmas the ten youngsters who make up the Raptor Kids chorus assembled at the Music Masters Recording Studio to record their portion of the new, soon to be released, CD by our ever popular in-house musical group, The Raptor Project.

Rehearsing one of their songs with Joe and Roger

The youngsters range in age from fifteen to nine years old.  Some of them were old hands at this recording business, since they had already performed on the group's first CD, "Save the Future".  However, some were new to the group, and this was an exciting new experience.

Being coached by Roger

After being coached by lead singers Roger Holloway and Joe Hoffman on the use of the headsets, and where their part fit into the songs, they began the job of becoming real recording artists.  Now, this wasn't your usual run-of-the-mill recording session!  How many recording studios get performers that hoot like an owl, howl like a wolf, and sing about frogs and possums?

The kids taking a break between songs

Even though they had been practicing their parts at home, and already knew the words, they soon found out that being recording stars could be hard work.  However, they know that when the CD is finally released late this spring all their hard work will be worth the effort.

Greg Trampe, owner, producer, engineer of Music Masters, showing the kids how the sound mixing equipment works.

Watch this blog for information about a special concert to kick off the release of the new CD later this Spring.

Submitted by Gay Schroer, World Bird Sanctuary Volunteer/Photographer