On March 17, one of the Pacific Northwest's great song leaders, will present a workshop from 1:30 to 4 p.m. on Singing Together to Nourish the Soul and Re-enchant the World.
The cost for the workshop by Laurence Cole is $25 or what you can afford. Tickets are available at the Laughing Oyster and Blue Heron bookstores.
The workshop will be held at the beautiful Creekside Commons Hall at 2202 Lambert Dr. in Courtenay but space is limited so people are strongly encouraged to get their tickets early. The workshop is appropriate for both experienced singers and those who call themselves non-singers.
Living in Port Townsend, Wash., Laurence is a songwriter and song leader whose intention and greatest joy is to facilitate the group expression of beauty and meaning through singing together. He has written numerous easy to learn songs, chants and rounds, layered with rich rhythms and harmonies that help folks connect with each other and the living world.
Many of his songs have been sung by the local Letzsing choir. He also draws upon similar songs and traditions from many cultures around the planet.
Laurence has been a lifelong student of indigenous traditions and modern processes for living simply and well in harmony with the Earth and each other. As he teaches the songs that spring from this background of experience, he enjoys relating the stories and teachings from all these explorations.
His website is www.laurencecole.com.
Laurence comments: "In these times of transition and uncertainty, people are rediscovering the need for community in a new, more interdependent way. Group singing has been one of the most essential technologies of meaning and belonging since humans have gathered in co-operative bands together.
"There are some anthropologists who theorize that singing predates speech, and has been a primal way for humans to both communicate and metabolize emotion, helping us make it through whatever we're going through in an enlivening way."
Laurence will offer a direct experience of the power and pleasure of such singing, which is quintessentially "low-tech"; no external power source or machinery required, just the equipment we were born with: our breath, our bodies, our voices, and our hearts.
Laurence will also sing and speak at the regular service of the Comox Valley Unitarians at 4 p.m. on March 18 at 250 Beach Ave. (Comox United Church).
There are programs for children and childcare for "little ones." People are also invited to enjoy a potluck dinner after the service.
For more information about these events sponsored by the Unitarians, call 250-338-1947 or see www.cvuf.ca.
鈥� Comox Valley Unitarians
