Rhythm Keepers
Workshops and Classes
Drumming
I offer introductory classes and lessons in the West African style of hand drumming for adults and young people. Using djembe drums and a variety of percussion instruments, it is possible within a very short time to be playing complex and fun rhythms, both individually and in groups. Contact me to set up lessons at a mutually convenient time.
In addition to lessons and workshops, I lead the Bowen Island Community Rhythm and Song circle once a month in our yurt at The Listening Well. Everyone is welcome, all ages and stages, no musical experience necessary. Admission is by donation, and some extra drums are available. Please contact me if you intend to come, as space is limited.
I'm also available to facilitate drum circles at your party or other social events and will happily travel to your location, or you can bring a group of up to 20 people to the yurt. Drums and percussion instruments provided. Cost is $100 an hour.
Thanks to Nigerian master drummer Babatunde Olatunji, who brought African drumming to North America in the 1950's, drumming is enjoying a great surge of popularity in the Western Hemisphere. Several of Olatunji's students, most notably Arthur Hull, have popularized the concept of "Community Drum Circles", with tremendously positive results. Drumming is healing, it is energizing, and best of all, it's fun!
Voice Work
I use the term "voice work" instead of "singing" because many people must reclaim their voices before they can even begin to think about singing. My voice classes and lessons are designed to bring out whatever it is in you that wants to be expressed vocally, whether it be what anyone else would consider "musical" or not. We are all unique, and so are our voices. Yours deserves to be heard.
There are very few of us who haven't been made to feel that our voices are inadequate or unimportant. If you are someone who likes to sing but are afraid to let others hear you, or perhaps you'd like to sing but are convinced that you can't, I have good news for you: EVERYONE CAN SING!
Yes, it's true. Some of us just have to take a step (or two) back first, back to that place where we spontaneously gave voice as children to our thoughts and feelings without worrying about whether we were "in tune" or not. Singing is a spontaneous expression of our inherent joy at being alive, and also a powerful way to express pain, grief and other strong emotions. Singing is our birthright, and a wonderful way to connect with ourselves and each other on the most basic level, being human beings together.
See the Schedule of Events for current information on upcoming workshops and classes, or contact me for individual lessons, to be scheduled at your convenience.
Toning
Toning is simply the practice of making sound with our voices. Sometimes the sound is "musical", sometimes it's not. Your own voice is a powerful instrument for creating healing sound. In my toning circles and workshops I use a variety of approaches to allowing the natural healing power of the voice to emerge. We do chakra opening meditations using particular vowel sounds. We tone with crystal singing bowls, and also with voices alone. We allow our voices to come out of our bodies in whatever way feels right, sometimes tuning into the sound of the group, other times going deep inside ourselves to feel what is going on inside of us as we tone.
See the Schedule for upcoming toning workshops.
Women's circles
I offer a variety of workshops and one-day retreats for women. "Women at the Well" is a one-day retreat at The Listening Well. It's an opportunity for women to take time to connect with themselves and each other in a tranquil setting. The activities of the day include singing, drumming, circle dancing, writing, walking the labyrinth, walking in the woods, a deep listening/talking circle, and sharing wholesome home-cooked food.
"Women's Voices, Women's Power" is a 3 hour workshop focussed on reclaiming the full power of our voices. Women have been disempowered in the modern world in a variety of ways, and not allowing our voices to be fully heard is one of the most insidious. Through reclaiming our voices, we assert our right to take up space in our world, and to be powerful, effective catalysts in our communities. In this workshop you will have an opportunity to explore your relationship to your voice in a safe supportive environment.
I have been participating in and leading women's groups for the past 8 years. My aim is to support women in the full expression of their essential selves, particularly the parts of ourselves we usually keep hidden from the world for fear of being "socially unacceptable". Through singing, toning, talking, listening, writing, drumming, circle dancing, laughing, crying, and simply breathing together in silence, women can create the sacred space necessary to heal ourselves and assist each other to heal from whatever it is in our pasts that keeps us from being fully alive in the present.