near the bear

San Francisco-based composer and instrument builder Cheryl E. Leonard returns in 2025 with near the bear, a five-track album released via the forms of minutiae label. The release serves as the fourth installment in the label’s Ice Series, a curated collection produced in association with UNESCO and the WMO to commemorate the International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation. Drawing from a 2011 residency in Svalbard, Leonard constructs a dense electroacoustic environment by interweaving High Arctic field recordings with the tactile percussion of found natural objects like bones and driftwood. The compositions further incorporate the resonant scrapes of saws, boats, and beakers, featuring a guest performance by Phillip Greenlief on the track Moffen. Mastered by Thomas Dimuzio, the work is presented as a limited edition CD accompanied by a booklet containing Leonard’s own photography and texts. By blending phonography with sculptural sound design, the album situates itself at the intersection of environmental activism and experimental drone, highlighting the acoustic multiplicity of the Earth's cryosphere.