Voice of Dao (up)dates

For those seeking to enrich their voices, let off steam and unlock their hidden creative potential, I organise a bi-weekly (as of 2014: weekly) voice session called Voice of Dao at the training centre of Canjune in Daan district, Taipei. We usually start with silence, breath and body movements to turn away from our busy mind into the body and to the sensations we actually experience. We let the voice come out of a natural breath flow. We listen to and follow its natural resonances. We do not try to sing in an artful way, but to experience how body-mind-voice are intimately connected, and how voice and resonance can serve as a bridge to overcome the dualistic notion of body <> mind. From then on, all kinds of styles and genres of vocalising and musicking may happen, some structured, some wild, some giving insight in your voice, some therapeutic. Exercises are based on yoga, musical and theatrical techniques, and vipassana meditation.

The human voice is a tool that assists human beings to produce a mirror-like reflection of the world around them in their minds. By gaining a deeper understanding and experience of the mechanisms of making sounds, words and music, and of listening, we gradually deepen the connections within ourselves (our body-minds) and with others and the world around us.

When and where:

The normal schedule for Voice of Dao is every two weeks on Thursday, but 10/10  will be changed to 10/9 and 12/26 to 12/24 (2013).

So these are all the dates for the Voice of Dao classes in Taipei up to Januari 2014:
October: Wednesday 9, Tuesday 22. (NOTE: CHANGED FROM THURSDAY 24: that day there will be no class).

November: Thursdays 7, 14.

(November 28 there will be NO class, despite earlier announcement).

December: Thursday 12 and Tuesday 24.

The Training Centre of Canjune is at 4F, number 3 , Lane 151, Fuxing South Road, Section 2, just 20 meters from the corner of FuXing South Road. The nearest MRT station is Technology Building. We start at 10. If you cannot find it, call the training centre: 02 – 27 00 72 91.

Get more details here.

Friday October 4: Living Room Concert

Hans will be Back – again! Next week he will return from a month-long journey in China.

At the end of next week, there will be another evening of Harmonic-Guttural-Metal Music at Hansuna’s place.

Presented by Maestro on the Singing Bowl and Gong Hans de Back, playing a wide range of metally things, and by myself on vocal cords and sruti box (and probably one metally thing too – a Jew’s harp from Sakha, Siberia).

If you don’t know what it’s like when metal bowls start singing and a human voice turns into a metal instrument (Jew’s harp, flute …), then make sure to reserve a seat for the evening of friday the fourth in Shi-Da. We promise you a mesmerising blend of instrumental and vocal sounds. Afterwards there will be a chance to try some things out for yourself under our guidance.

Chinese link here:

聲音的饗宴: 客廳音樂會 = 10/4 (五) 晚上7:30~9:00

Date and time: Friday, October 4, 2013, from 19:30 till 21.

One hour of live music, plus 30 minutes of Q&A and singing together.

Damage: 600 NT$.

You can reserve a seat by writing an email to Una Kao:

unakao@yahoo.com.tw 

HansUna’s blog

Mark’s Facebook

Hans’ Facebook

Jonathan Harvey’s Forms of Emptiness morgen bij Musica Sacra

Morgen opent het Musica Sacra Festival in Maastricht met Forms of Emptiness van de onlangs overleden Britse componist Jonathan Harvey (1939-2012). Een groots opgezet stuk voor drie koren en twee boventoonzangers op basis van de onovertroffen Hart Soetra (een fascinerende tekst die ik zelf sinds een jaar of wat reciteer) en teksten van E.E. Cummings. Was ik in Nederland geweest, dan had ik meegedaan, maar met Diem Borg Groeneveld hebben ze in ieder geval 1 goede boventoonzanger. Hij laat weten zelf wat meer te doen qua boventonen dan wat de partituur voorschrijft. Waarschijnlijk wist Harvey in 1986 nog niet wat er allemaal mogelijk was, of kon hij niemand vinden die kon doen wat hij graag wilde horen. Neemt niet weg dat Harvey een uitstekende componist was met interessante ideeën over muziek en resonantie, zoals na te lezen in zijn boek In Quest of Spirit.

 

Jonathan Harvey (Foto: Mykel Nicolaou)

Overigens is deze week de 70e verjaardag van Michael Vetter, avant-garde fluitist en later ook deelnemer aan Stockhausen’s vroege werken met boventoonzang (maar weer niet de eerste, Stimmung, uit 1968). Vetter’s half-Japanse dochter Mayuko schreef nog vóór Harvey’s stuk uit ’86 een boek vol zeer ingewikkelde boventoonzang-etudes. Zij was toen 6 jaar oud…. (en kon elk stuk zelf zingen). Er was dus wel degelijk meer gaande dan Harvey vermoedde. En nog steeds weten componisten niet goed wat ze moeten of kunnen doen met boventonen. Als alles goed gaat zullen Rollin Rachele en ik, alias het Superstringtrio, in november van dit jaar nog eens laten horen wat je allemaal nog meer kan met vokale boventonen, in Amsterdam en in Polen. We houden je op de hoogte. Eerst genieten van Harvey’s Forms…  bij Musica Sacra, gezongen door Studium Chorale o.l.v. dirigent Hans Leenders.