VOCAL FREEDOM: Deeper and Wilder!
VOCAL FREEDOM: Deeper and Wilder!
GROUNDING WISDOM:
“Speak truth to your own power” -Renee Sills
“Do not pray exclusively to the ancestors of the land; make room also for the spirits of the fault line, the new gods that scream through cracks with the first musical notes of worlds to come.” - Bayo Akomolafe
VOCAL FREEDOM GUIDING PRINCIPLES:
There is no such thing as good or bad singing, only more free or less free.
Our collective liberation needs ALL of our voices, especially those who have most often been silenced or shushed or told they “should” sound a certain way.
The wildness and wisdom in your blood and your bones is connected to the wildness and wisdom in your breath and in your voice.
AREAS OF FOCUS:
New vocal freedom tools, building on the tools from the first workshop
Songleading skills and practice
Nervous system care through singing
Reflection on what is asked of our voices in this moment in the world
We will not do a formal review of the foundational Vocal Freedom tools in real time during this cohort, but:
Everyone who registers can download the self-paced, pre-recorded version of the Foundations and Explorations workshop for free if they want to revisit the previous tools.
No one is required to ever sing out loud for anyone else, but there will be some opportunities to do so, if you choose to.
A ROUGH DRAFT MAP of the content of each session (this might change a little but not a lot):
July 1st: Connecting and Grounding Together
Co-creating our culture together, small group connection
Reflection on your past, present, and future, singing voice
Reflection on what this moment in the world is asking of our voices
Singing together
July 8th: What Your Bones Know
New vocal freedom tools rooted in singing the songs of each persons’ ancestors (blood and chosen), listening from and singing from the bones
Small group connection
Singing together
July 15th: Root - Heart - Voice Connection
New vocal freedom tools connecting your root to your heart to your voice, singing from and with the earth
Small group connection
Singing together
July 22nd: Transformational Community Songleading
A workshop on skills for leading songs for/with others
Reflection on what kinds of singing together are needed in this moment in the world
Singing together with (optional) opportunities for songleading practice
July 29th: Larynx Love + Trauma Healing
New vocal freedom tools offering gentleness and care to the muscles around the larynx and their connection to the pelvic floor
Singing together with (optional) opportunities for songleading practice
August 5th: Cracks Are Where the Light Gets In
New vocal freedom tools around allowing the cracks/wildness in your voice and making sound with your WHOLE voice
Singing together with (optional) opportunities for songleading practice
August 12th: Review of Everything
Review of all the new tools
Space for questions and answers
Singing together with (optional) opportunities for songleading practice
August 19th: Integration and Celebration
Reflection on learnings and openings from our time together
An informal recital/songshare (you are invited to perform a song and/or lead a song for the group)
Closing with care
ACCESSIBILITY INFO:
This workshop is designed to work for a wide range of abilities and bodies. Disabled and neurodivergent folks are warmly encouraged to join! Auto captions/Transcript will be provided. It is always okay to adapt and/or opt out of anything, as is right for you in the moment. Please let me know what other access needs you would like me to hold with you on the form when you register, and/or email me directly with requests or questions: workwithorion@gmail.com.
Sessions will be recorded, but they will only be available for the week after each class. The main intention of recording is so that folx can re-listen to the lesson or practice along afterward. I highly recommend coming in real time, as most participants have given me the feedback that the community connection in real time is as much or greater support to their singing (and their souls!) as the lesson/practices parts.
REGISTRATION DETAILS:
Please register ***by June 1st*** so that I can confirm that we have enough people.
I anticipate that there will be enough people so that I will be able to offer this fully!
(But if not enough people register, I may offer a modified version along with the option of an immediate full refund if the modified version doesn’t feel like a match for you.)
Financial Transparency:
I yearn for everyone who wants to participate to be able to participate! So I have put a lot of thought and care into what I hope will be the sweet spot of financial accessibility for participants as well as what is sustainable for me in offering this.
I offer a sliding scale not because I am financially well-off, but rather to offer as much financial accessibility as possible within capitalism.
Given the extra precarity in the world right now, it feels aligned to me to offer per-session rates that are about 25-35% lower than the core rates of a typical cohort I offer.
And also, this work is my foundational income, so I need everyone who can afford to register at the “at cost” rate (or above) to do so.
I am hoping and trusting that this range offers a way for this to be sustainable for all of us, and that this workshop will be deeply nourishing and fortifying for all involved!
***If you go to register and the price tier that is right for you is already sold out, feel free to reach out to me at workwithorion@gmail.com, and I can add you to the waitlist.
***And/or feel free to reach out to me to work out a payment plan.
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AT COST: $250
Consider paying this amount if doing so would be an investment, but not create hardship for your household. You might choose this rate if you are able to regularly meet your basic needs and have some expendable income, can travel every couple years without burden, and have some debt but are able to pay it regularly. This is the rate I need most folx to contribute in order for me to be sustained in this offering.
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PAY-IT-FORWARD: $400
Please consider paying this amount if you are comfortably able to meet your basic needs, own the home you live in, have paid or pay for private education, travel recreationally, have access to financial savings and/or investments, have reliable work or do not have to work to meet your needs, have inherited wealth, and/or have increased earning privilege due to your race, gender, or education. This rate is a pay-it-forward rate that makes it viable for me to work with more folx who need a lower rate.
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COMMUNITY SUPPORTED: $100 - SOLD OUT
(3 spots available up front, more might be available if enough people register at the higher pricing tiers)
Consider paying this amount if you have limited expendable income, have little or no access to financial support from family, have significant debt, and little or no access to savings, OR if you live outside the U.S. and this rate is relatively much higher for you. This is a discounted rate.
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Feel free to reach out to me with any questions! If you would like to be a part of this, I want to work together to support your participation. <3