WELCOME !
You are warmly invited to a heart opening evening of chanting, music, harmonies and cacao.
Musicians and ceremonial facilitators Katie and Francesco will create and hold a space of relaxation, healing and joy through shared songs from India and the Celtic lands.
Kirtan it is a participatory, call and response form of singing/chanting, originally from India. It is becoming increasingly popular throughout western society as people discover the uplifting and healing effects of chanting together (though similar practices are rooted in various cultures and religions globally).
This is an inclusive space where we welcome people of any or no religion/spiritual practice. At a Kirtan event, the lines between musician and audience are blurred: the audience members play a vital role in the music through their singing in response to the “call“ of the artists.
We define our event as "Kirtan-inspired" rather than Kirtan in an attempt to acknowledge the complexity of transnational histories, tensions, and contradictions of cultural appropriation. We will be singing songs in a secular setting that come from a variety of religions and culturally diverse backgrounds and strive to do our own work on decolonising by at least acknowledging how we came to know these songs and this form of sharing music, and what they mean.
We will be sharing songs that span from Sanskrit to Irish, Gaelic and English, with translation and context given.
FOR A SHORT 2 MINS VIDEO about the Mantra Movement see here : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVg6xjzRcDo
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WHAT TO EXPECT
This event will last 2 hrs and will include
- a guided meditation
- voice opening exercises
- body movement
- group chanting
- happiness and harmonies
- moments of silence, stillness and relaxation
- Ceremonial Sound Journey to end (Instruments include Tibetan Singing bowls, south-african Kora/Harp, live Grand piano, Violin, dijeridoo and Chimes)
NO PREVIOUS SINGING EXPERIENCE REQUIRED - we will co-create a gentle and safe space to enable our voices to express freely, giving an opportunity to our heart to open and join together into a single melody.
**** We will also work with the sacred medicine of "CACAO" , from a women’s cooperative in Guatemala, as a way to keep us centered and open in our hearth ****
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COST: Sliding scale £10 / £15 / £20 . Including a drink of Organic Guatemalan Cacao.
The purpose of the sliding scale is that those with greater means pay more so that it is accessible to those who can’t afford as much.
If money is an issue, please don't worry and join us anyway (and if you want you can give whatever you can afford)…. We’d rather for you to be there !! :)
The price will include a small dose of pure ceremonial grade CACAO that we brought back directly from a Guatemala, home of Cacao, where we stayed with a women’s cacao cooperative. (This will not be a ceremonial dose)
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ABOUT KATIE and FRANCESCO - The Inner Chéile
Katie and Francesco are loving partners who started "The Inner Chéile" , a musical project aimed at creating and holding spaces of healing, love and celebration through shared harmonies and sounds.
Cheile in irish means "harmony" & "togetherness", reflection of the balanced space Katie and Francesco aim to cultivate within and between them, & to honour their Celtic roots.
Katie works as a dedicated environmental educator and activist, with a background in eco-therapy, ceremonial work, shamanic training, reiki, poetry and music.
Francesco is a passionate Shiatsu Massage Practitioner, Movement Instructor, Singing voice facilitator, Ceremonial space holder and a Carrier of the Sacred Fire. He composes his own songs which he loves sharing in a variety of ceremonial settings and festival.
(see more about Francesco's work here : www.resonancetherapies.life )