How to Prepare for a CircleSong Group

When I trained with Bobby McFerrin on his CircleSong process, there was a wonderful story he told about preparing for his performances. He talked about how people spend time getting ready for a performance, picking out clothes and basically transforming into a performer. He said a long time ago, he decided that he didn’t need to transform. As an improvisational artist, someone who doesn’t prepare a performance but rather goes on stage and just lets the moment bring him into the experience and the music, he just needs to show up. Every experience from the day leading up to the performance helps shape the performance. So he said he doesn’t change his clothes. He said “the music is in my clothes.”

What a wonderful concept. How often do we think we need to change (our clothes or ourselves) in order to fit the moment? We craft what to say, what to do, how we will present ourselves. But if we just let our natural self come forward, that is all that is truly required.

In improvisational singing, it’s all about the process of allowing ourselves to be vulnerable and open to whatever presents itself. Therefore, preparing for it doesn’t require anything but showing up.

When I lead CircleSongs, I tell people to:

• Expect the unexpected
• Leave their inner critic outside
• Bring an open mind
• Drink plenty of water

The process will take care of itself and lead us to the sounds that create a wonderful, fun, moving, and transformative musical experience.

For further information about how you can join a CircleSong group and to listen to samples of CircleSongs I led while studying in New York, please visit http://www.krylyn.com/circlesongs. To register for an upcoming CircleSong group go to http://circlesongs.eventbrite.com.

The Benefits of CircleSongs

In August 2011, about 150 people from around the world came together in New York, amidst the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Irene. Some of us traveled for days to get there. Some were delayed by the weather. Some of us had waited for years to have the opportunity to experience what we were about the experience. All of us left that experience changed by the magic we encountered.

What brought us to the quiet, rural town of Rhinebeck was none-other than Grammy Award-Winning artist Bobby McFerrin. He, along with five of his hand-picked faculty from around the United States, were there to teach us about CircleSongs, a process he developed of improvisational community singing.

McFerrin was one of the people late in getting there due to the weather, which delayed the start of our full experience by nearly a day. But someone from his PR firm was on hand to get things started with a mass CircleSong. It was clear from the beginning that we were about to experience something magical. One person at a time, all strangers to me, got into the middle of the circle and led the group in an improvised song, inviting those of us forming the circle to participate. We were nervous and excited, watching and listening to each other closely. And when the first round was over, there wasn’t a smile-less face in the room. We knew we were there for a profound reason.

From that point on, we came together in community, whether walking around the beautiful campus, eating at the cafeteria-style dining hall, or forming our own little song circles at the little café or atop the highest point of the campus in the meditation hall. The experience of singing together led to so much more than we could have imagined.

Once I returned home, my soul was on fire as I continued to listen to recordings of what we created together and we shared videos, pictures, and stories from our experiences on our Facebook group. It took me a couple months to be able to articulate what I experienced in New York and what benefits I had gained that I wished to pass along to others who would participate in my CircleSong group in my local community.

CircleSongs provide rich opportunities to:

1. Express yourself creatively. If ever there was an opportunity to be creative, CircleSongs provides it. Everything created in a CircleSong is in-the-moment, improvised, and spontaneous. You are only limited by your imagination.
2. Break down social barriers (language, culture, etc.) . Out of 150 people who attended the New York training with me, most were from the United States. But we also had people from France, Belgium, Canada, Brazil, Germany, India, Denmark, Norway, etc. And one of our teachers was even born and raised in Lebanon. There’s something about music that cuts through barriers. In CircleSongs, we sing musical phrases without words. We sing sounds. Some are universal sounds. Some are more related to culture. But there is room for any and every sound. And the sounds someone from a different place and culture makes affects other sounds. It is a true blend of human experience.
3. Strengthen connection to yourself. Even though you sing with others in community during CircleSongs, you are still on your own. Left there to listen to others and the conductor in the middle of the circle, feel the music, and deal with any inner voice that begins talking to you during the process.
4. Foster cooperation, teamwork, and community. It is difficult to create a cohesive improvised song without working together. There’s a phenomenon that happens in the circle, which most musicians call “the pocket” or “the groove,” when everyone is in synch. You can feel that moment happen. Everyone is singing together, listening to each other, working toward the same thing….true creative expression. When you’re in the pocket, you know that everyone there serves a unique purpose. Everyone is needed. Everyone is contributing to the beautiful song that is being created.
5. Support yourself and others in creative, uninhibited expression. Support is a cornerstone of the CircleSong process. We must listen to each other. The conductor in the middle of the circle creates one musical phrase after another and assigns it to different parts of the circle. He/she creates one phrase and passes it along, then must listen to what comes up next in the improvised songwriting. As a conductor of these circles, I can tell you that everyone in that room contributes to what music comes out of my mouth. The music is inspired by everyone there – their energy, their musicality, their very being.
6. Promote self-confidence and a sense of accomplishment. Even people who profess they are not singers or are not creative leave a CircleSong experience with a different perspective. Where they claimed they could not sing, they have now sung. Where they claimed they were not creative, they helped to create something. When we accomplish something we are hesitant to even try, it inevitably raises our confidence. Even those of us who identify ourselves as singers and as creative leave a CircleSong boosted. CircleSongs are about creating. And in that process there is a beginning, a middle, and an end. At the end, we typically smile. Some laugh. Some clap. There has been something profound that has been accomplished. And everyone feels it.

The best way to get a sense of all the benefits from CircleSongs is to experience it for yourself. I invite you to join me for CircleSongs Phoenix, which I will be leading beginning January 9, 2013, in the Phoenix, AZ metro area. For further information about CircleSongs and to listen to samples of CircleSongs I led while studying in New York, please visit http://www.krylyn.com/circlesongs. To register for an upcoming CircleSong Phoenix group go to http://circlesongs.eventbrite.com.

Coming Full Circle: One Songwriter’s Journey to CircleSongs á la Bobby McFerrin

I wrote my first song at age 8 and by age 14 was composing fully arranged songs. Songwriting became my “drug of choice” as a teenager. I used songwriting to cope with growing up in a chaotic environment where neglect and abuse ran rampant. Songwriting was not only my form of escape from all the drama going on around me, but also a way for me to express some pretty deep thoughts and feelings.

Even though I came from a musically-inclined family, I didn’t feel much support from any of them as I came into my own as a young musician. But I did find support and inspiration from people who shared their talent and vulnerability in their own music.

In the 1980’s, I stumbled upon the most unique vocalist I’d ever heard – Bobby McFerrin – who used his voice (and body) as an instrument. His vocal ability left me in awe. Mind you, the 1980’s were a magical time for music discovery. MTV and VH1 were just starting out. I don’t remember exactly where I first heard Mr. McFerrin, but I do remember the first song I heard. Take a listen below.

After watching his performance, I was hooked. I began a journey of more creativity and improvisation in my own songwriting. I began singing non-sense type lyrics and just vocal sounds over musical phrases I’d created with my synthesizers and drum machine beats. Friends and family I shared these little experiments with either LOVED them or didn’t. There wasn’t much in between. But for me, the experience of improvisation was profound. There was a freedom in the creative process I hadn’t felt before, the idea that I could do anything with the sounds and that was okay. It didn’t have to be perfect.

This kind of experimentation opened up doors for me as I continued my songwriting journey. I began using non-traditional instruments in my arrangements (such as wooden spoons pounded on phone books) and continued to explore using my voice as an instrument. I also created a capella arrangements, using my voice for all parts of a song (bass, percussion, chords, etc.). I always seem to come back to the voice.

When I found Mr. McFerrin trained others in some of his improvisational singing techniques, I was on board. The only problem is that when I found out, it was just after he had led a workshop in New York at the Omega Institute in 2005. Year after year, I checked back with the institute, but no more classes were scheduled. Then one fateful day in January 2011, an email came into my inbox announcing the return of McFerrin’s CircleSong workshop. I signed up immediately and had an amazing experience studying with him and his team of faculty in late August-early September 2011. (That’s a picture of me and Bobby to the left, September 2, 2011, in New York).

It is with deep joy and awe (and Bobby’s blessing) that I bring the CircleSong experience to my local community in Phoenix, Arizona. For further information about CircleSongs and to listen to samples of CircleSongs I led while studying in New York, please visit http://www.krylyn.com/circlesongs. To register for an upcoming CircleSong group go to http://circlesongs.eventbrite.com.

Watch and listen to the first song I ever heard by Bobby McFerrin…

YOU are Creative, Really!

 “Creativity requires the courage to let go of certainties.” ~ Erich Fromm

Are you creative? Now before you rush to answer that question, think about it. I didn’t ask if you were artistic. I asked if you are creative.

It amazes me how often people tell me how un-creative they are when they find out I am a songwriter, as if I am standing there in judgment. Can everyone write songs? Well, I believe yes, they can. But that’s beside the point. The point is everyone is creative, whether it be in making music or something else entirely.

The trick is first defining the word creative. Broken down, being creative can be defined as the ability to create. That’s simple enough. We create every day, whether it be a daydream while waiting in rush hour traffic or a task on the job. Creativity is making something new and useful, especially when solving an everyday problem, like how to get to work when your regular route is blocked or how to get everything done on a to-do list in a short period of time.

Many people associate creativity with art or music, but what about problem-solving? When’s the last time you came up with a creative solution that no one else around you thought of (that really worked)? Or looked at a situation in a whole different perspective that really helped you get through a difficult time?

We often fail to recognize smaller feats of creativity, passing them off as unimportant or uninspired. But truly it is the smaller moments and our reaction to them that create the bigger picture…how we live and experience life, which in turn affects our overall well-being.

So, redefine what creativity is for you and then get to creating. I’d love to hear about what you created today! Leave a comment below.

Photo: Puzzle © by INTVGene

Farewell, my Furry, Fluffy Feline…

I have just weathered my third significant loss of 2012…the death of my beloved feline, Hoover, who (along with his twin brother Boomer) has been a part of my family for just over 10 years. While I didn’t intend for this blog to turn into things all about grief, it is about self care, my own journey included. And my journey this year has been winding, painful, glorious, sad, and blessed all at the same time.

After a very short week and a half of diagnostics, medications that didn’t work, and rapid decline, I made the painful decision to help my fluffy boy end his suffering. I found a vet who performs in-home euthanasia. With soft, soothing music in the background and candles lit, Hoover drifted into a peaceful, eternal sleep in my arms. This picture was taken just hours before he passed – him laying in one of his favorite spots on the couch, near the front door, enjoying a cool breeze and the sound of birds chirping.

I am so grateful for the outpouring of support from my friends and family. Here is a poem I wrote in response to one of the most common things people say to you after a loss (“let me know what I can do”). I know I’ve said it to others before, but this year, this challenging year of three losses, I have heard this so much and been on the other side of it. As usual, life looks different on the other side.

world turned upside down
©2012 krylyn

there is nothing i can think of
as my world is turned upside down
thoughts are fuzzy
head in a daze
walking around aimlessly
searching, waiting, hoping
then remembering
my world is turned upside down

i forget basics
like breathing, eating, and drinking
then something reminds me
and i come back from wherever i was
thinking of memories
or painful decisions
or how i am going to go on with this
intense sadness
my world is turned upside down

so you ask me to let you know
if there’s anything i need
and there is nothing i can think of
because my thoughts are fuzzy
and i cannot even remember to breathe
all i can do is grieve
my world is turned upside down

Building Creative Confidence

Designer David Kelley talks about creativity as something we all possess. In this TED talk, he shares some of his ideas about the importance of building creative confidence which somehow gets lost along the way. Enjoy!