Children and parents alike will be delighted by Elena Moon Park & Friends! Park is a musician, educator, and producer living in Brooklyn, NY. Her band performs music for all-ages audiences, playing folk and children's music from around the globe, with an emphasis on East Asia and original songs. A talented multi-instrumentalist, Park has performed with a wide array of presenters, including Carnegie Kids, Lincoln Center Out of Doors, Lincoln Center Education, The Getty Center LA, Flushing Town Hall, Brooklyn Academy of Music, BRIC Arts, Asia Society NYC and Houston, World Cafe Live, Symphony Space, 92Y, Noguchi Museum, Snug Harbor Cultural Center, Brooklyn Children's Museum, Madison Square Park, and many more.
Originally from Oak Ridge, TN, Elena studied anthropology and ethnomusicology at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL and completed her M.A. in Urban Policy from The New School in New York. Before moving to NYC, Elena briefly served as a development consultant for grassroots social justice organizations on the south and west sides of Chicago.
In 2010, she began working with Found Sound Nation (originally a wing of the new music group Bang on a Can), designing collaborative music creation workshops. In 2012, Found Sound Nation entered into a partnership with the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs to launch OneBeat, an annual global music diplomacy program that brings together musicians from around the globe to the U.S. each fall for one month of creative collaboration, performance and engagement with communities.
In 2012, Elena also released her debut all-ages album called Rabbit Days and Dumplings, featuring reimagined folk and children's music from East Asia, including Korea, Japan, China, Taiwan and Tibet. Released in fall 2012 by Festival Five Records, the album has received lovely feedback, including a Parent's Choice Award and a feature on NPR's All Things Considered. Elena continues to perform with all-ages musicians Sonia De Los Santos and Dan Zanes. In summer 2020, she released a new album, Unhurried Journey, a collection of songs for all ages that celebrates the beauty of taking our time to appreciate every moment of our individual and collective journeys. The album is inspired by the artwork of Kristiana Pärn, and features original songs based on her artwork plus reimagined folk and children's songs from East and Southeast Asia.
