About B & B…

Burnell Yow! was born in Paragould, Arkansas on April 10th, 1951. He grew up, however, in rural Michigan where he spent a good deal of time writing poetry and songs, playing guitar, drawing, and stalking the wild asparagus in the nearby woods, fields and swamps.
At the age of 23 Yow! packed up a duffel bag, grabbed his guitar and set off for San Francisco, CA to become the next John Denver. Only one thing stood in his way: performance anxiety! He hated to play in front of people.
Three years and much anxiety later, he returned to Michigan and gradually became more involved in the visual arts. While never completely giving up the guitar and writing songs – and even performing occasionally – painting, collage, sculpture and eventually digital art became his passion and purpose.
His works have been exhibited in numerous galleries across the country and in other venues, as well.
In September of 1997, he met two artists via the Internet and they began a collaboration now known as the Digital Exquisite Corpse Project. Examples of their work have been seen in: • Red Herring Magazine • Computer Graphics World Magazine • Digital Design & Photography • Andre Codrescu’s online journal Exquisite Corpse: A Jounal of Life and Letters. In 2001, two images from the series won a place in the top 100 digital works in the IDAA (International Digital Art Awards) exhibition. And in the summer of 2003, two images from the series appeared in Photoshop: Secrets of the Pros by author Mark Clarkson. You can view the entire series (currently numbering 77) by going to the Gallery page on this website.
Since 1995, Yow! has maintained a full-time studio in Philadelphia called Raven’s Wing Studio, which incorporates not only his visual art, including web design, but also a home-recording studio where he records and produces his songs as well as demo and teaching tapes for his wife, composer/teacher Elizabeth “Betsy” Alexander.
A resident of Philadelphia since 1985, Yow! shares the journey with Betsy and their six wonderful cats: Miro, Max, Clara, Gabby, Nora & Rennie.
BETSY ALEXANDER

Teacher/composer/visual artist Elizabeth A. Alexander, known to her students and friends as Betsy and in the theatre world as simply E. A., began her exploration of the piano at the age of four. Her private students range in age from three years to seventy, and her teaching skills encompass piano, voice, composition and guitar. Her life-long enthusiasm for music and for the sharing of that music through teaching has positively impacted the lives of hundreds of children and adults over the years.

Alexander teaches the Suzuki method and highly recommends the book Nurtured by Love by Shinichi Suzuki. The book can ordered directly from Amazon.com by clicking on the image to the left.

In addition to her passion for introducing music into the lives of others, Ms. Alexander has also expressed her passion for composing through her work in Music Theatre. She has also (with lyricist/collaborator Lezley Steele) written songs for the Hallmark / PBS Television series Zoobilee Zoo.

Compositional works include theme and incidental music for Theatre Caravan’s production of Chaucer’s CANTERBURY TALES; the musical ALEPH BET BOP, commissioned by Theatre Ariel; and the musical ANNE FRANK: A VOICE HEARD, which was written with collaborator Lezley Steele, and commissioned by American Theatre Arts For Youth (ATAFY). It toured nationally through the year 2001.

Alexander’s musical ANOTHER KIND OF HERO, again with collaborator Lezley Steele, was performed at the Walnut Street Theatre in Philadelphia in 1992, and in Toronto and New York in 1993.

In 1995, Hedgerow Theatre appointed Alexander to the position of Composer-in-Residence, a position she held until 1998. They have since produced two of her children’s musicals, THE VALENTINE and THE SNOW QUEEN (book and lyrics by collaborator Marge Royal), and premiered her new work THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL (also with Marge Royal) on their main stage during their 96-97 season.

Ms. Alexander’s current projects include an improvisational piano score for a video on the Digital Exquisite Corpse project; and a collection of new age piano compositions.

Alexander’s previously produced works include MUMBO JUMBO with Lezley Steele and Linda Penney at Pulse Ensemble Theatre in New York; STAKIN’ MY CLAIM with Granville Burgess, commissioned by and presented by Oklahoma Shakespeare in the Park; and WHALESONG with Granville Burgess, commissioned by and performed at The New Jersey State Aquarium. Ms. Alexander has also composed incidental music for numerous productions.

In 1991 and again in 1994, Ms. Alexander was the recipient of PA Council on the Arts Fellowship awards for a new musical. Philadelphia Magazine awarded her a “Best of Philadelphia” for her music from ANOTHER KIND OF HERO. In addition, she has received numerous awards for her songs from The Billboard Song Contest and The Music City Song Festival.

In 2003, she began exploring the visual arts and became, along with her husband and fellow artist Burnell Yow!, and active member in the Philadelphia Dumpster Divers - an informal group of about fifty artists who use trash and found objects in their art. Her Art Cross series and miniature Alaskan Sunset paintings can be viewed on the couple’s website.

A graduate of Temple University with a degree in composition, Alexander has participated in the BMI and ASCAP musical theatre workshops and is a member of The Dramatists Guild. She currently resides in Philadelphia with her artist husband, Burnell Yow! and their six cats – Miro, Gabby, Max, Clara, Nora, and Rennie.

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