Tea & Song: a 6-week winter community singing series

Every time I go into the darkness

I return with fistfuls of jewels.

-Barbara McAfee, "Jewels"

What are the questions that you hold in these times? What brings you joy and hope? What grieves your heart?

As we make our way through the winter darkness, we will gather in song. We will sing amidst the heartbreak & hope of these times.

This 6-week zoom community will serve as a living room in which to gather, to share and listen, and to sing. We'll let the songs move us in joy and grief alike.

Te will teach simple songs call-and-echo style; there will be time to learn songs and to share our hearts and voices with one another both in breakout groups and with the whole.

Example flow :

-Settle in, welcome, grounding practice

-Opening song

-Group sharing or breakout groups with a prompt

-Singing with time after songs for sharing/reflection

-Closing circle & song // sharing // takeaways

Dates:

January 21

January 28

February 4

February 11

February 18

February 25

all classes are 11:15am PT- 12:30pm PT

What to expect each week:

-Grounding and embodiment practices

-Somatic regulation through song

-Connection with an intimate group of people through both large group and breakout group sharing and listening

-Learning and practicing new songs

Have questions? See the FAQ section below and if you still have wonderings, email [email protected]. I hope to sing with you soon.

About the facilitator:

Te Martin is a song-keeper and ritual artist. They were born on Ramaytush Ohlone land in san francisco and have been shaped by Ocean, Redwoods, circus arts, and theater games. They facilitate oral tradition singing classes and workshops that focus on song as a tool for collective liberation, somatic regulation, and ancestral connection. Te served as co-organizer of Thrive Street Choir in the san francisco bay area for six years, is a student of Gaelic song and the Irish bodhrán drum, recently launched "Murmuration: A Sebastopol Community Choir" in sebastopol, california, and released their first professional music video and EP of original songs, "Water & Bones", in 2021.

Water & Bones: https://temartin.bandcamp.com/album/water-bones

Music Video:

FAQ

Do I need to actually bring a cup of tea to the session?

This is an invitation, not a requirement ;) You are welcome to join without a cup of tea.

Do I need to be a practiced singer to join?

Nope! Singers of all levels are welcome -- experienced, new, or anywhere in-between.

Will meetings be recorded?

If there is consent from the whole group, meetings will be recorded for the purpose of sharing/reference within our group container.

What if I need to miss a call?

Ideally, everyone can be there for the whole 7 weeks to hold our container together, but if you need to miss a class, it's not a problem.

How does singing together on Zoom work?

Because there is a delay on Zoom, we won't actually be able to hear each other singing together. Rather, I'll teach songs and others will stay muted while they sing with me. While it might seem a little unusual at first, my experience is that even over Zoom, the medicine of song and community carries through powerfully! After leaving a Zoom singing call, I've often said to myself (in the words of my friend Aimee Ringle)... "I FEEL BETTER!"

Will anyone else hear me sing?

Not if you don't want to! Most of the singing will happen with the group on mute (except for my voice). There will occasionally be times when I invite people who would like to to come off mute and sing but this is absolutely optional.

Event Venue

Online