Rhiannon's Annual Hollyhock Retreat
Vocal Improvisation - The Mystery and Technique
(Intermediate Level Workshop)
August 27 - September 1, 2010
Hollyhock
Cortes Island, British Columbia
Canada

Hear your breath blend into your own song. Feel your body make music in a safe and dynamic circle of singers. Find your place in the world of music. Work alone, in pairs, and in ensemble as you meld intuition and invention with skill and heart. Delve into the possibilities of spontaneously composed music and the language of storytelling. Strengthen harmony and rhythm, vocal tone, texture, and technique. Hone your skills, then take your voice to the beach and into the forests of Hollyhock.
For strong singers with solid, inventive skills in rhythm and pitch. You must be comfortable singing in a group setting. Each singer receives personal attention and feedback.

Enrollment limited to 16.

TUITION: $685 CDN (meals & accommodation extra), 5 nights

To register: http://www.hollyhock.ca/ 800-933-6339

*****************************************************

All The Way In 2010-11
Rhiannon's Year Long Advanced Vocal Improvisation Course

3 -7 Day Sessions
July and December 2010 and June 2011

Europe

FULL

Next session of this course will be taught in the US and Canada in 2011-12

*****************************************************

EXTENDED TO 10 DAYS!

Mele a Hakuwale--To Sing and Improvise
Rhiannon’s Advanced Improvisation Retreat
Hale Kai (beautiful, private retreat center)
Ho’okena, Big Island of Hawai'i
January 19-29, 2011

Tuition: $2500

Turns out that the magnificent, inspiring gathering at Hale Kai is too much to be held by seven days, so in January 2011 we are extending the gathering to ten luxurious days.
Each year the singers come from far flung parts of the earth and are bonded by their lifetime devotion to music and desire to create community. We are finding that friendships form in these days that will last a lifetime.

Our singing circles are a combination of improvisation, song form, technique study and intuitive development. Outside those singing circles we explore the gifts of the island and Hawaiian culture. Each year new and amazing possibilities emerge.

This gathering is for 12-14 skillful improvisors with strong, committed vocal lives. It is Rhiannon’s most advanced yearly retreat, second only to All the Way In. Acceptance into this workshop is based on Rhiannon’s approval. If Rhiannon is very familiar with your vocal work from past study with her, she may be able to admit you based on that. If she is not familiar with your vocal work or it has been a long time, she will ask you for a phone audition. Details will be provided. We also welcome you to email a photo to help Rhiannon remember you, as well as a link to your music, if you have any on line.

From Rhiannon:

I invite you to a vocal gathering on the Big Island of Hawaii, at the beach, on the tropical Kona coast, right around the corner from Ho’okena, a deep, clear bay where I have often swum with the spinner dolphins.

Hale Kai will be our home for 10 days and nights. It is a blessed place of serenity and power. It has the feeling of a Balinese village in its simple decor and intimacy. Everywhere you look there is a sense of ancientness and grace.

We gather in the large open yoga room for our singing sessions, or on the lava coast right outside the gate, or at various other sacred places and pristine beaches where the music flows. We will study the mystery and techniques of vocal improvisation, using all kinds of music, from local Hawaiian chanting and songs, to your own invented and composed music, on out into the music of the world. We will find the connections between performance and healing as we blend song form and sound, all the while feeling the magic this island has in abundance.

Simple mostly-vegetarian cuisine with fresh local fruit and fish will feed our bodies while we sing to feed our souls.

There is a profound sense of O'hana (family) here that is very important in this world of disconnect and isolation. Believe me, you will feel connected here. Local folks and kapuna sometimes come by to share music and talk story with their knowledge of the traditions and history of these islands. It is a reminder that when we sing, the earth is always under our feet, and it matters so much where that is.
That is why it is so precious to come to Hale Kai and sing for your life!
With the blessing of aloha,
Rhiannon

Living Arrangements at Hale Kai:

Hale Kai is like a tiny village in an old Hawaiian neighborhood - a unique cluster of wonderful spaces, each different and lovingly furnished. It is off the grid and solar-powered. Most rooms house 2 or 3 people, and so communal living is a fact of life in this setting. Tuition includes 7 nights room and meals, plus ground transportation and teaching...essentially all expenses except your airfare to and from Kona.

Finances:

Upon acceptance an $800 deposit is requested.