Vocal Flow | Trust In Play

In Vocal Flow: Trust in Play, we dive deep into the waters of collaborative vocal improvisation, circlesinging, and playful musical discovery in an intimate small-circle setting.

This session is limited to 20 experienced singers: vocalists with solid musical skills who want to strengthen their relationship to improvisational flow, expand their expressive freedom, and connect with new friends through co-creating spontaneous vocal magic.

We begin by crafting a space of trust and safety, of playfulness and curiosity, of vulnerability and discovery. With this shared foundation, we invite you to step bravely into a series of improvisational games and guided explorations inspired by Rhiannon’s Vocal River curriculum, Musica do Círculo, Bobby McFerrin’s Circle Song School, and our own improvisational ideations.

Together, we explore:

• rhythm
• melody
• harmony
• movement
• song form
• body-voice connection
• duet and small ensemble composition

These exercises strengthen confidence, deepen listening, and help rebuild the essential (and often forgotten) muscle of play. As adults, many of us lose touch with our natural playfulness, even though every emotion we feel or suppress shows up in our voice. Play reopens the door to authenticity, agility, presence, and joy. Through solo, duet, and group improvisations, we’ll explore how to trust our impulses, surprise ourselves, and let the music lead.

Throughout the session, we continually return to the central questions:
How can I listen more deeply to my inner creativity, to my singing partners, and to the music itself? What does the music want in this moment, and how can I serve it?

Vocal Flow is a joyful, transformative invitation to step into deeper vocal freedom, musical connection, and embodied creativity. Come dip your toes the flow of improvisation. The water’s fine.

Who Is It For?

• Vocalists seeking depth, confidence, and freedom
• Artists eager to explore group improvisation
• Songwriters looking for fresh creative tools
• Anyone ready to play, trust, and be surprised

What Does “Experienced” Mean?
You feel confident holding your own part, comfortable with rhythm and harmony, and willing to be brave, seen, and heard in your improvisational exploration. If you’re willing to grow and take creative risks, this circle is for you. And, as always, this space is judgment-free. Mistakes are welcomed, encouraged, and celebrated. Perfection is unnecessary. Play is everything.

WHO IS LEADING THIS VOCAL FLOW SESSION?

This session will be led by the incredible Zahara (Annette Philip).

Zahara (she/her) is a Grammy and Emmy nominated musician, educator, and arts entrepreneur. A versatile vocalist with roots in Kerala, India, she is known as a visionary who delivers on big dreams. Zahara is a seasoned recording and touring artist, composer, pianist, voice-over actor, public speaker, TV personality, and bonafide sari connoisseur. She is Founder/Director of the Grammy-nominated Berklee Indian Ensemble, a viral phenomenon with over 300 million views, renowned for its signature global Indian sound and world class productions. Before her Boston years, in 2003, she founded Artistes Unlimited (AU) in New Delhi, India, a performing arts collective promoting collaboration among city musicians. Today, Zahara takes this mission global through her internationally acclaimed a cappella quartet, Women of the World (singing in 37 languages); her songwriting duo, Tigs and Nettles; and "keeping it light" her podcast on self-love, acceptance, and healing.

Zahara believes we build resilience through playfulness. Her workshops on improvised storytelling through sound, movement, and global vocal nuances help singers trust, love and better understand themselves and their voice.

RESPECT THE SPACE:

Arts on Site 3F is a beloved space and we want to honor them. Kindly be considerate of the space.

PHYSICAL ACCESSIBILITY:

• 2 step walk up to lobby.
• Elevator available to the 3rd floor (reserved for those with physical disabilities).
• Seating available (narrow benches with no backs).
• Bathroom is not wheelchair accessible.
• Venue prefers shoes to be removed upon entering.

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LOW-PRESSURE PARTICIPATION

Gaia Music Collective events are participatory, but low-pressure. You'll be invited to sing along and make music with us, but we encourage you to draw your own boundaries and engage at your own pace - we pride ourselves in creating a judgment-free community where you can express yourself however feels right!

LATE ARRIVALS

We ask that you arrive no later than 30 minutes after start time, after which we close the doors (lovingly) in order to preserve the intimacy and trust of the musical container we’re building. Thank you for understanding!

CANCELLATION POLICY

Tickets are refundable up to 24 hours before the event, after which we are no longer able to offer refunds. This policy helps us keep these events financially sustainable for both our community and our team. If you RSVP but are no longer able to come, please let us know so that we may offer your spot to someone else! We want as many people to be able to experience these gatherings as possible, and since capacity is limited, each spot is precious.

For more info, contact us at gaiamusiccollective@gmail.com.

MEDIA CONSENT

Because we want to share what we’re up to with people who can’t join us in person, there may be photographers and videographers present — by attending, you consent to being a part of that media, some of which may be posted online! If you have any questions or concerns, please email us at gaiamusiccollective@gmail.com.

NO ONE TURNED AWAY FOR LACK OF FUNDS

Gaia is funded by sliding scale ticket donations, with a “no one turned away for lack of funds” policy. It is of the utmost importance to us that these events remain affordable and accessible - we never want money to be a barrier to making music together. If a ticket scale is financially prohibitive to you, feel free to donate outside of the scale at whatever amount is sustainable for you, or to email us at gaiamusiccollective@gmail.com for volunteer opportunities or assistance!

COMMUNITY GUIDELINES

At Gaia Music Collective, we are dedicated to building a community where creativity, collaboration, and care thrive. The values listed here shape how we work together, how we engage with the world, and how we move toward upholding these principles.

OUR MISSION

Gaia Music Collective is an NYC-based creative community seeking to foster a more connected world through collective music-making. Founded in June of 2021 in a living room in Brooklyn, this project was born out of a desire to create accessible, inclusive, playful spaces for people to explore connection, expression, healing, and release through collaborative song - spaces where folks feel empowered to make music free of judgment or expectation, and to make new friends as our full, beautiful, authentic selves.

We believe that communal music-making is a fundamental human practice, and this project seeks to build spaces for folks to nurture their relationship to music, whether they're shower singers, professional musicians, or anything in between.

All are welcome in this community. Gaia seeks to foster spaces of belonging for humans of all ages, races, genders, sexual orientations, classes, religions, abilities, national origins, languages, and musical experiences. All we ask is that you bring an open mind, a desire to connect, and a willingness to leave judgment of self and others at the door.

FAQ

Have any questions that haven't been answered here? Check out our Event FAQs!

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