get
deliciously
sidetracked.
01/ Sound Meditation
You arrive with your worries, your running to-do list, and perhaps a healthy dose of skepticism about what good lying on a floor and listening to sound could actually do.
But sound has a funny way of getting your attention. Before long, you're following it around the room, curious what instrument is making that noise, and wondering what you’ll hear next.
And while you've been busy being curious, the death grip on your thinking mind has forgotten what it was doing there in the first place.
02/ THE ATTENTION FIELD
the room becomes part of the instrument.
The attention field is a little bit of magic. I might move around the room with an instrument, lift it overhead, move it close or far away from you, working with the sound as it bounces off walls, ceiling, and floor. Suddenly, you're wondering whether there's one musician in the room or five.
You're free to make up your own explanation. You might imagine yourself somewhere entirely different, follow a memory that unexpectedly surfaces, or simply become fascinated by the strange and beautiful noises happening around you.
And then comes the silence. The last vibration fades, and for a moment there's nothing new to follow. You get to linger in what just happened, resonating with anticipation of the next sound.
03 / A CONVERSATION WITH SOUND
I am responsible for creating the soundtrack to your journey, but I never know exactly where the music will take us.
I move freely with the music as it unfolds, until the distinction between the musician and the instrument begins to disappear.
Before a sound meditation, I spend time experimenting with different instruments, their placement in the room, and the unexpected combinations they might create. Sometimes I have a theme in mind or a particular musical journey I'd like to explore. But once the session begins, I let go of my expectations and allow myself to be moved by the music.
There is a reciprocity between me and my instruments, almost like a beckoning, a call and answer. The inspiration for what comes next often appears only after I hear the last sound. The instrument speaks, I listen and respond, and the instrument speaks again.
Sometimes I build intensity and let it cascade into stillness. Other times, a song comes out of my mouth that I hadn't planned to sing. I've learned to trust those moments, and the silence that follows them.
04 / WHERE THE SOUND TAKES YOU
SOMEWHERE BETWEEN
MEMORY AND IMAGINATION.
Sometimes people emerge from a sound meditation and have absolutely no idea how to describe what just happened.
Others have traveled somewhere extraordinary. They might recognize an old pattern, find an unexpected answer to a problem, or experience a depth of rest they haven't felt in years.
But some of my favorite moments happen when a sound brings back a memory they didn't even know they still had.
The chimes might take someone back to their grandmother's garden, where they played as a child.
The rainstick might bring back an afternoon sitting on the porch with their mother, listening to a thunderstorm.
A place, a feeling, an entire afternoon that hasn't crossed their mind in decades.
I love that a sound
they've never heard before
can somehow bring them back
to a place they know in their heart.
05 / THE ART OF LISTENING
You don't need to train for years to become good at listening.
Trying to relax, meditate, or simply quiet your mind can be so very difficult. Sound gives your thoughts somewhere to follow, like a path through the forest, attentive to what might be waiting around the next bend.
A drum might stir anxiety in one moment and make you feel empowered in another. Harmonious sounds can feel wonderful, while dissonance captures your attention in an entirely different way.
We're not only hearing a gong,
we’re sensing its vibration.
WHEN YOU'RE CURIOUS, YOU TEMPORARILY SUSPEND WHAT YOU KNOW TO BE REAL.
And give yourself the freedom to explore other answers.
COME LISTEN.
Curious to experience it for yourself?
Join me for an upcoming sound meditation, or let's dream up something special for your own gathering.