Review of 'Introduction to Voice, Sound and Consciousness' Workshop

In November, well-regarded theatre professional and creative leader Chris Grady attended the Introduction to Voice, Sound and Consciousness Workhop in Clapham and wrote a review on his blog. Below is an extract; the full blog can be found here. 

And finally Professor Derek Barnes. I first worked with Derek in 1988 on a Sondheim gala in Buxton with young direct Keith Warner and his MD colleague James Holmes. Over the years we have remained in touch. Most recently he did a crazy project with Kath Burlinson creating three new musicals with three different composers in Belfast in 10 days. I learned a little more about his research work into the power of sound and vibration to make a difference to our lives. On Sunday I spent a day witnessing and experiencing the work.

Now I’m a drop-out mathematician (two years at Bristol reading too little Maths and doing too many lighting plots) and so his quickly sketched graphs of time & space, vibrational pattern, and the power of numbers in the rotation of the earth rather satisfied me. This was all to help us realise that everything he was talking about was rooted in science – from Pythagoras to Einstein and onward to researchers today.

What we then witnessed was use of sound from the dawn of time, harnessed by tribal peoples across the world, and voiced/breathed to this day to connect to our emotions and physical being.   If you wonder about the power of music to move you emotionally, or the extraordinary vibrational qualities of drumming, or the sense of natural harmonies of voices improvising together – then go to this day, and seek out to learn more.

Derek is a voice coach, a master of teaching singers, a composer, arranger and so much more besides. You appreciate the workshop at the level right for your personal development – you don’t need to be a singer at all (like me), but we all use our voice and our breathe consciously or unconsciously. Derek brings our awareness to focus a little more on the power we have to support our own health and wellbeing, and support others. Thank you for a great day.

Read the full blog here: http://www.chrisgrady.org/blog/touching-the-coresoulheart/