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SOUND
CIRCLES GUIDELINES FOR FACILITATORS
INTRODUCTION
Thank
you for choosing to become a Sound Circles facilitator. We
hope that these guidelines will answer many frequently asked
questions about the workshop process. It has been developed
in consultation with a number of experienced facilitators
to give you the benefit of their knowledge and resources.
As
well as information about the Sound Circles process, the guidelines
include a number of sample activities which can be used as
a starting point for planning. They can be built on as you
gain experience. We have also included a number of templates
for planning and reporting which will help you to ensure that
you haven’t forgotten anything along the way.
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Yungaburra
Workshops North Queensland 2005
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These
guidelines are not a substitute for practical experience,
and undoubtedly you will gain most benefit from participating
in and facilitating Sound Circles workshops. Talking with
other Sound Circles facilitators is another excellent way
to learn and Access Arts provides a number of mechanisms for
doing this such as through teleconferences and e-mail discussion
lists. (See the section on networking.)
Those
of us who facilitate Sound Circles derive much pleasure and
enjoyment from the experience. Not only do we learn about
new ways of using sound and movement for expression, we also
gain much knowledge about ourselves and each other through
a culture of respect and value. We hope that you will also
enjoy this opportunity and will feel free to ask questions
and make suggestions on your Sound Circles journey.
FACILITATOR PREREQUISITES
Background
in music and/or performance
(This does not mean you need to be a professional musician
or actor, but you need to have the ability to facilitate music
and movement activities which match the skills and abilities
of participants.)
Read
the Sound Circles Toolkit text and view the accompanying DVD
The toolkit is available by contacting Access Arts on 3358
6200 or 1300 663 651 for callers outside Brisbane. The text
from the tool kit booklet is available on the Access Arts
website at www.accessarts.org.au/sound_circles_guide.htm.
Empathy
No
matter who you are working with, eg. people experiencing a
disability, the elderly or the corporate sector, you will
need a thorough and current knowledge of the needs and challenges
faced by the group.
Excellent
observational skills
One
of the most essential skills you will need to develop as a
Sound Circles facilitator is the ability to constantly monitor
the reactions of participants to determine their responses
to a particular activity. You can then determine whether to
explore the activity more deeply, follow the lead of an individual
or group of participants who are taking the activity in a
particular direction, or move on to something new. You will
learn to do this mainly through experience, but your ability
to be flexible and react quickly will assist you.
Listening
Skills
You
must be an excellent listener. This will help you to interpret
the needs of the group, particularly as you get to know them
better. You will learn not only from what they have to say,
but also from what they do not say.
Learning
Objectives:
·
Use existing voice and performance skills to work with communities
to generate new sounds, new performances and new compositions
· Gain an understanding of the philosophy and principles
which underpin the Sound Circles process
· Accurately read the needs and interests of the Sound
Circles group to ensure that workshop activities reflect these
· Develop structures for Sound Circles workshops
· Learn how to deal with challenging situations
· Report on the progress of your group.
What
is a Sound Circle?
(From
the Sound Circles Toolkit text guide 2005)
Overview
of the Sound Circle
The
basic Sound Circle comprises regular workshops attended by
a group of interested people in order to develop skills and
to experiment creatively in the realm of voice and sound with
a view to some kind of performance outcome, formal or informal.
The workshop series may be self-contained or the group may
wish to link it to other community events or may invite others
in to participate in a performance or process.
'Sound
Circles groups provide a space which values our own life experience
as grist for the creative mill, rather than just the experience
of others who've done the same but have become famous for
it. Also it underlines the functional place of artistic expression
in our lives - that it's not just about entertainment, but
about shared experience and meaning.'
Ann Bermingham - Facilitator
The
establishment of a Sound Circle requires the collaboration
of a number of parties, including a host organisation, potential
participants and the facilitator(s). Prior consultation across
the parties needs to establish that there is sufficient interest
and resources to put the idea into action. This consultation
also gives the facilitator(s) a starting point for the workshops
based on the nature of the potential participants and the
level of resources available.
In general the Sound Circle aims to create a meeting of people
through creative activities in voice/ sound and performance,
in such a way that it develops a sense of belonging and place
for everyone in the group. Individuals grow in confidence
in these activities, with a strong sense of connection and
ownership with the group and the activities. With a stable
membership, the group can develop a framework for its own
evolution and hence plan and access further opportunities
as they wish. Each Sound Circle can decide on its own priorities.
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It's
not about your singing voice. It's about sound! This is a
Sound Circle. It's about releasing sound from your body in
what ever way it comes out. It stops that nervousness of ‘I
have to sing well!’ Rachel Welsh- Participant
It
takes away the pressure. It’s focussed more on self-exploration
rather than competing to be the best. Stacey – Participant
During
the series of workshops, facilitators and/ or host organisations
may also link individuals or subgroups of the Sound Circle
to other activities indicated by the specific enthusiasms
or directions of those people.
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On the jetty Cairns
Queensland
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These
connections with other community activities and organisations
can form the foundation for future partnerships and development
of your Sound Circle.
SOUND
CIRCLES PRINCIPLES
When
deciding how to structure Sound Circles workshops, it is
worth considering what it is about the Sound Circles philosophy
which sets the process apart from the hundreds of other
voice and movement workshops out there today and what makes
it so successful.
A
Group-Directed Process
This
is probably the most important principle of the process,
but often the most challenging for us as facilitators to
implement. Our role is to work with the group to establish
what direction they would like the workshops to take and
tailor activities which will get them there. EG: What are
their passions? Do they enjoy singing and would they like
to perform at some stage? Do they enjoy sharing stories
with one another and can these be represented through sound
scapes etc? Would they like to write songs? Do they love
to dance?
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In most cases there
will be a wide range of needs and interests within a group.
Your role as a facilitator is to find a place for all of them
through a variety of activities. In some cases you may also
want to link group members with particularly strong interests
and talents into other opportunities in your community. EG:
dance lessons, a choir etc.
This principle of the group-directed process is also important
to keep at the forefront of your mind during any workshop
process. Even if you have developed what you believe is a
wonderful activity, enjoy the experience of going where the
group takes you. Be open to deviations from your plan and
you will find that they may ultimately lead to greater creativity.
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Cairns
Sound Circles Choir
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Valuing
the Creative Process
As
trained professionals we are often instinctively driven to
create perfection. Our challenge in Sound Circles is to value
the creative process without the need to focus on the end
result, or whether the outcomes are right or wrong. There
is no right or wrong in Sound Circles, it is a completely
free process. A simple example of this could be: the facilitator
asks the participants to clap a rhythm and one of the participants
decides to sing hers instead. While this wasn’t what
you had planned, as long as the participant is making a contribution
it doesn’t matter. Another participant may opt to pass
on an activity for no apparent reason.
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While
you may desperately want the person to participate, they need
to exercise their right to do so in their own time and in
whatever way they feel most comfortable. Remember that Sound
Circles may represent the only opportunity they have had during
the week to make a choice for themselves and you need to respect
their right to do so. You may need to look at the more subtle
ways in which they are participating to find an entry point
which works for them. View this as a challenge, not a disaster.
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Group
Leadership
Taking
on a leadership role can increase confidence and develop a
strong sense of group ownership. The Sound Circles process
provides an excellent opportunity for members of the group
to take on leadership roles. These could range from setting
up the chairs through to facilitating a song-writing process.
Some people are natural leaders, some will need considerable
encouragement and support, and others will have no interest
in leading the group. Your role is to provide plenty of opportunities
for group members to take on leadership roles. It is easy
to unwittingly make assumptions about who will want to lead,
so take care to ensure that everyone has the opportunity,
whether or not you think they will be interested.
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Sound
Bath laying on the floor Japan Expo |
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Leadership
may be planned or spontaneous. Look for opportunities for
people to take on spontaneous leadership roles. For instance,
if a member of the group who does not normally participate
is tapping a rhythm with her foot, using a percussion instrument
etc, focus on that and ask everyone to follow their lead.
Once again, flexibility and spontaneity are the key elements
here.
Feedback
Feedback
is an important aspect of any workshop process, and Sound
Circles is no exception. Having said that, it is easy to
get caught in the trap of spending half the workshop getting
feedback which can become tedious and is ultimately counterproductive.
It is useful to build a feedback mechanism into one of your
activities. (See the section on sample activities.)
It
is essential to consider the purpose of any feedback activity.
Being aware of why you feel that feedback will be useful
at a given time and how you might respond as a result of
the feedback you receive will enable you to plan a focused
activity which you can facilitate quickly and efficiently.
Avoid long feedback sessions where you go around the circle.
On the other hand, do your best to ensure that the more
dominant personalities in the group don’t take over
the session and that the more reserved members have an opportunity
to contribute if they wish.
The
most useful feedback can usually be derived from careful
observation of group responses throughout the session and
from reports from individual participants, their families
and support people after the workshops.
Sometimes
feedback can be difficult to accept. For example, you have
just facilitated a really exciting activity, but receive
feedback from the group that they were bored by it. Initially
you may feel a strong sense of disappointment that they
did not enjoy the activity, but this can be an excellent
opportunity to find out from the group what they would have
preferred to do or what might need to change about the activity
to make it more exciting to them.
Obviously
this is an extreme example. Hopefully you would have observed
the lack of interest during the activity and altered your
plan with input from the participants.
Community
Cultural Development (CCD)
The
CCD model underpins the Sound Circles process. The following
quote from the Sound Circles Tool Kit Guide summarises the
CCD approach.
Active
participation in cultural life is an essential goal of community
cultural development.
All cultures are essentially equal, and society should not
promote anyone as superior to the others.
Diversity is a social asset, part of the cultural commonwealth,
requiring protection and nourishment.
Culture is an effective crucible for social transformation,
one that can be less polarising and create deeper connections
than other social-change arenas.
Cultural expression is a means of emancipation, not the
primary end in itself; the process is as important as the
product.
Culture is a dynamic, protean whole, and there is no value
in creating artificial boundaries within it. Artists have
roles as agents of transformation that are more socially
valuable than mainstream art-world roles - and certainly
equal in legitimacy.'
Adams D & Goldbard, 2001, A Creative Community - The
Art of Cultural Development.
Rockefeller Foundation, New York
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WORKSHOP
STRUCTURE
Workshops
can be structured in numerous ways according to the needs of
the group. They can be a short as fifteen minutes, or run for
several hours.
Issues to consider when developing a workshop structure:
- What does the
group want to achieve and how do they want to go about it?
- Do they want to
work towards a performance?
- Are they a management
team looking to improve collaboration etc.
- What needs does
the group have which might impact on the structure,
are there time constraints?
- Do some members
find it difficult to concentrate for long periods of time?
etc.
- How many people
are in the group and how long will each activity take?
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Sample
1.
The
template below is a sample two-hour workshop structure developed
by the Brisbane Sound Circles group.
1.
9:30am - PLANNING, RESOURCES, SET UP etc
2. 10:00am - WELCOME & Ground rules
3. INTRODUCTIONS
4. WARM Up
5. ACTIVITY 1
6. BREAK
7. CHECK IN &/OR FOCUS
8. ACTIVITY 2
9. CLOSURE [eg. SOUND BATH / REFLECTIONS]
10. Close
11. 12noon – 12:30: TIDY UP & DEBRIEF
12. REPORTING, NETWORKING & PLANNING FOR NEXT WEEK
Sample
2.
The
following is a sample structure for a thirty minute workshop.
1.
10:00-10:05: Group introductory activity.
2. 10:05-10:10: Warm-up
3. 10:10-10:20: Activity.
4. 10:20-10:25: Sound bath.
5. 10:25-10:30: Close
Planning
and Debriefing
Planning
and debriefing are essential to ensure that the workshop flows
well and that any issues are dealt with.
Planning
Given
the spontaneous nature of Sound Circles, it is best not to
make your planning too structured. You may want to use the
template provided in the section on “workshop structure”
as the basis for your planning.
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Ensure
that you decide what resources you will need well in advance
so you don’t have to panic at the last minute. Resources
might include:
Chairs
CD player
Refreshments eg Tea/coffee and biscuits
Balloons
Percussion instruments
Recording equipment
Notebook for yourself
Song lyrics
If you are working with support workers, volunteers or involving
participants in leadership roles, ensure that they have opportunities
to contribute to the planning process.
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Balloon
game Aichi Japan
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You
may even want to plan with the whole group using workshop
activities. Ensure that all involved are clear about what
is expected of them within their role.
Planning
does not have to be done face-to-face. You can plan via
e-mail or through a teleconference. As a guide, it may be
useful to set aside thirty minutes either side of the workshop
for planning and debriefing with facilitators, support workers,
volunteers and interested participants.
It
is important to have a plan, with ideas for themes, warm-ups
and activities. But once you have a plan, don’t cling
to it. The plan is not the basis for a successful Sound
Circle, the group is. Often suggestions are made in the
group eg someone starts singing a song or a participant
gives feedback that they really enjoyed a warm-up or a section
of an activity done in a previous workshop. Follow these
leads, even if it’s not in your original plan. With
your guidance, they will ultimately develop a process which
works for them which you could not possibly have imagined,
but which will teach you about the value of their creative
process.
In
some situations, however, the activity plan needs to be
followed more specifically. EG: in 2005, Access Arts took
Sound Circles to the World Expo in Nagoya. In this instance,
workshops needed to be structured and planned in advance
because of translation issues.
Also, if the group is performing to an audience, it is important
that there is a strong plan and some activities are rehearsed
so there aren’t too many unpleasant, unplanned surprises
along the way.
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Debriefing
Debriefing
can help you to learn from the workshop by talking through
how it went with others. This could be someone from within
the group or you may like to talk to someone at Access Arts
or another Sound Circles facilitator.
Debriefing
could also be done through report-writing. (See the section
on reporting.)
You should
not hesitate to address any issues which concern you during
the debrief. It is far better to discuss problems as they
arise than to allow them to fester and grow into major issues
later.
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2004
Brisbane Powerhouse |
REPORTING
Reporting
has an essential role to play in Sound Circles for a number
of reasons:
Writing
about your experiences or finding some other way to reflect
on them which works for you is an excellent way to learn about
the way you facilitate and to understand what you did well
and what you could improve on. It is also an opportunity to
reflect on how the needs of the group are evolving from week
to week as you look back over previous reports.
Reports can provide a rich source of evidence for Access Arts
and/or your host organization when submitting funding applications.
They can contain tangible information about outcomes of the
workshops and recommendations for the future of the group.
Reports provide a vehicle for additional discussion and reflection
among facilitators, support workers, volunteers and participants
in between workshops. E-mail can be a useful tool for sharing
and discussing the contents of your reports. The “reply
to all” option is particularly useful to allow all recipients
of the original E-mail to receive the comments and feedback
on the report.
Access
Arts is committed to working in partnership with Sound Circles
groups across Queensland. We will need a brief monthly report
from you so we know how things are going and how we can best
support you. If you believe your group has done something
which is of particular interest or you have concerns, feel
free to contact us at any time.
We
strongly recommend that you write weekly reports for your
own records. Alternatively, if this option seems unnecessarily
time-consuming you might prefer to keep a journal, take images
or make audio recordings to remind you of what happened during
workshops and in planning and debriefing sessions.
Reporting
Template
The
template below is a suggested report format for the monthly
report. Feel free to add or change it to suit your needs.
SOUND
CIRCLES REPORT
(insert
month and year).
By:
Average
no. of participants:
Outcomes:
(what has the group achieved this month? EG: increased participation,
a new song etc.)
Learnings and what you will do differently as a result?
(what have you learned and how will you change the process
to improve the way it works as a result?)
Issues: (any challenging issues which have arisen, how have
you dealt with them and do you need support/training to improve
your capacity to manage them?)
Administrative Issues:
Other
comments:
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SAMPLE
EXERCISES
One
of the questions we are frequently asked when we talk to new
facilitators relates to whether we can provide a list of sample
activities. Given that the Sound Circles process focuses on
meeting the needs of particular groups, it would defeat the
purpose of the workshops for us to be too prescriptive about
activities.
However, there is certainly value in having some suggestions
which can be used as a starting point for developing activities
tailored to the needs of your particular group.
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Sound
Circles Summit |
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These
are by no means set in stone, and the list is not exhaustive
but may get you out of trouble if you are stuck for inspiration
which is natural from time to time.
Introductory
Activities
These
activities are useful to enable the group to get to know one
another. Some may not work for a larger group and may need
to be adapted.
Name
Playing
Go
around the circle and ask each person to say/sing/dance their
name in whatever way they like. EG: using pitch/tone variation,
illustrating through a movement etc. This can produce some
very creative and often hilarious results! You may then like
to ask people to move around the room and introduce themselves
to one another using their altered names. This may be a way
to make the activity work in a larger group if going around
the circle will take too long.
How
Do You Feel
Go
around the circle and invite people to say their name and
make a sound or movement which describes how they are feeling.
Variations:
Invite participants to make a sound relating to the weather,
something they did during the week, something they saw on
the way to the workshop, or anything else you can imagine.)
Greetings
from Around the World
Start
by asking the group whether they have been to another country
or whether they know how people say hello in other languages
and also what gestures they make.
If you like you can ask people to step forward into the middle
of the circle to contribute a greeting.
Then they can walk around the room sharing greetings with
other group members.
Sound
Charades
This
is as the name suggests. The group can divide into pairs.
Each of them makes a sound and the other has to guess what
it is. They can then find another partner and repeat the process.
A great way for people to get to know one another, especially
if you ask them to make sounds around a particular theme such
as where they went on holidays or what they most enjoyed during
the week.
Pass
the Clap/Squeeze
This
exercise can be used to focus the group early in the workshop
or after a break.
Either
pass a clap or join hands and pass a squeeze around the circle.
Be sensitive to the fact that some people may be uncomfortable
holding hands so it is a good idea to do a quick check if
possible.
Once you have gone around at least once you can speed things
up. The pulse can then spread throughout your body to your
knees, shoulders arms etc and then into a pulsing sound which
mirrors the pulsing rhythm.
Warm-up
Activities
As
you know it is always important to warm up your body and voice
prior to using them. Most of us view warm-ups as necessary,
but painful. Not so in Sound Circles! It is often helpful
to consider what skills you would like participants to develop
during the workshop, EG focusing on pitch, exploring new sounds,
rhythmic patterns etc. You can design the warm-up to focus
on those skills. Here are a few exercises to start you off:
Breathing
(I have a video)
Breathing
exercises can be very useful not only for warm-ups, but also
as a means of refocusing after a break.
Breathing
and Stretching
Breathe
in and out slowly. As you breathe in, stretch up as high as
you can, and bring your arms down as low as you can when you
breathe out. Once this is comfortable, introduce a sound on
the outward breath, EG a vowel sound. Invite participants
to focus the sound in the middle of the circle. You may then
want to move into some kind of improvisation out of the original
sound.
Breathing
with Hands
Begin
with silence
Place your hands together close to your heart as though you
are praying and take a deep breath in.
As you breathe out, keep your hands together but straighten
your elbows so your hands are straight out in front of you.
Breathe in and move your hands out to the sides of your body.
Move your hands back together straight out in front of you
as you breathe out
Breathe in as they come back into your chest and finish with
an out breath with hands back out in front of you. You can
repeat this several times.
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Group
Massage
Stand
in a circle. Turn to the right so you are facing the back
of the person in front of you and give them a neck and shoulder
massage. After a few minutes you can turn to the left and
repeat the process. Encourage the group to make sounds to
show their appreciation for the massage.
You
will need to be aware that occasionally someone may be uncomfortable
with this activity due to the physical contact, but generally
it is very popular.
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Massage
Circle
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Singing
Depending
on the interest and skills in your group, you may like to
use a song or vocal exercise as part of your warm-up. The
options are endless. Asking one or two people to conduct
the music, or improvise movement to it is often useful,
particularly if some group members are non-verbal.
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Workshop
Activities
The
activities you do after the warm-up will often be spontaneous
and be drawn from the input of the group. It is useful to
have some activities planned, but be prepared to put them
aside for next week and go where the group takes you. If you
are feeling uncertain of what to do next, or lacking in creative
inspiration, be confident that just by interacting with the
group either before or during the workshop you will find the
answers. It can also be useful to have a theme for the workshop
which will help to link activities.
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Story-telling
Invite
a few participants to tell a short story, (can be fact or
fiction.) Starting with what happened during the week can
help and may be a good way to get to know the group. If
verbally telling the story is not possible, the participant
could mime it perhaps with the help of a support worker.
The whole group can then tell the story using sound and
movement.
Creating
Sound Scapes
Divide
into small groups. Give each group a theme. Some suggestions
might include:
Holidays
Parties
Cooking
Transport
Each
group then develops a short story around the theme and performs
it for the rest of the group using only sound and movement.
Song-Writing
There
are numerous ways to compose a group song limited only by
your creativity. You don’t need to be a song-writer
yourself to do this. The methods below will help you get
started.
Two
Minute Song
It
is often helpful to start with a theme. Perhaps ask the
group to come up with something topical, EG the local festival
which is on next week, a recent cyclone or whatever they
like.
Start a simple rhythm which everyone can join in on and
ask people to contribute a word which relates to the theme.
Each time a word is contributed, the group joins in and
improvises on that word, until someone comes up with another
one. Once you have the words you can gradually put them
together and build a short song. You may only need five
or six words.
One
Word Method
Go
around the circle and invite each person to contribute one
word. You can start with a theme if you want to. The words
can then be written down and used to create a song. The
group can decide what word will be used as the “hook”
which will make the song memorable etc. This can take up
considerable time in the workshop, but is very enjoyable.
Balloon
Activities
(Before
using balloons, check that nobody in the group is allergic
to the rubber or has a phobia of balloons. Both are reasonably
common issues.)
Balloons
can be fun and are particularly useful for participants
with a hearing impairment as they can be used to pick up
sound vibrations.
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Balancing
Act
Divide
into pairs and give each pair a balloon
They can place the balloon between their noses, knees, back
etc. They can then move around together balancing the balloon
between them.
Balloon
Vibrations
Stand
in a circle. Use the balloons to connect everyone up cheek-to-cheek.
Invite the group to enjoy the vibrations through the balloon
as they explore a range of sounds.
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Ballon
Balancing |
Balloon
Orchestra
Give
each person a balloon. As a group, explore the range of
sounds that you can make using balloons. Then divide into
several groups and ask each group to come up with a sound
and/or movement using their balloons. They can then demonstrate
this to the larger group. The four parts can then join together
in an orchestral performance which can be conducted by one
or two people.
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Sound
Bath
The
Sound Bath has taken on an important role in Sound Circles.
At the 2005 World Expo in Japan it was a gift we gave to our
Japanese friends to thank them for sharing in Sound Circles
with us. The description below will help you to create your
own sound baths.
Stand in a circle and join hands.
Invite a small number of participants to come into the middle.
The people in the middle will receive the sound bath, those
on the outside will make the sounds.
Ask everyone to be silent and close their eyes for several
minutes. The sound bath can then begin. Sounds are improvised
using voice and body.
The sounds start gently, build to a peak and then diminish.
As the sounds build, the outer circle can move in closer to
the centre, then move back out as the sound diminishes.
Finish with silence for several minutes.
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Mirroring
Divide
into pairs. One person leads using sound and/or movement
and the other person mirrors this. After a few minutes they
can swap around.
Exploring
Rhythm (I have a video of this)
Divide
into four groups. Give each group a rhythm and accompanying
movement and let them rehearse it together. They can then
start moving around the room and mingling so they can experience
the different rhythms crossing over.
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Mirroring |
Finally,
bring them back into the circle as they continue to share
the rhythms. This activity can be themed. For example, you
could use the rhythms, sounds and movements to create a fire.
Sharing
Songs
Invite
participants to share their own songs with the group. This
could be via a CD which they bring from home, a dance or
song which they improvise or a small group performance.
Spiral
Dance (I have a video of this)
This
works best in a larger group- of at least 20 or more. This
activity is not suitable for people in wheelchairs.
Start
in a circle holding hands. A designated leader breaks the
circle with one hand and starts walking facing the inside
of the circle leading the circle, (as people in the circle
file past, this can be a good opportunity to greet each
other) making a spiral of smaller circles within the big
circle. When the leader gets to the middle of the circle,
they turn around following the path in reverse, ending in
the large circle again.
Kites
This
activity is particularly good when you have a large group
which includes people in wheelchairs.
Participants
in wheelchairs form the basis for kites which people join
onto to make kite tails of varying lengths. They move around
the room blowing in the wind. Some people may like to make
wind sounds.
Feedback
It
can be difficult to obtain feedback in a short space of
time. The activities below may be helpful to circumvent
the process.
Sound
Feedback
Go
around the circle inviting participants to make a sound/movement
to describe how they felt about the workshop.
Variation: ask participants to contribute a single adjective
to describe their feelings about the workshop.
Networking
Opportunities
The
best way to develop your skills as a Sound Circles facilitator
is to work with more experienced facilitators to learn more
about the process. This may be difficult if you are establishing
the only Sound Circles group in your community.
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Increasing
Opportunities
Access Arts is developing processes to increase opportunities
for networking
Some
of these include:
Access to the Statewide Co-ordinator, Emma Bennison who
is a Sound Circles facilitator and can be contacted at Access
Arts on:
1300 663 651 for the cost of a local call or 3358 6200 for
Brisbane callers, or by email.
Regular teleconferences for facilitators across Queensland.
Regular E-mail discussions for facilitators.
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Tunnel
Game |
Funding
is currently being sought to deliver ongoing training for
facilitators in regional areas through the “Crossing
Divides” project. This will include Initial three-day
skills development visit for trainee facilitators. (See program
below.)
Three subsequent follow-up visits.
Monthly streaming of Sound Circles workshop to Statewide Co-ordinator
via the internet.
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CROSSING
DIVIDES
SOUND
CIRCLES SKILLS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
Experienced
facilitators will spend three days in the community, delivering
training to potential facilitators through training sessions
and Sound Circles workshops with members of the local community.
Day
One
11:00-12:30:
Introductory Session
(For trainee facilitators and support workers.)
Content
will include:
o
What is Sound Circles?
o Under-lying principles
o Workshop structure
o Reporting
o Planning for first workshop.
12:30-1:00:
Lunch
Sound
Circles Workshop
Theme:
Exploring Sounds
1:00-1:15:
Welcome, ground rules, introductions and warm-up
1:15-1:45: Exploring sound through voice, percussion and
rhythm
1:45-2:00: Afternoon-tea
2:00-2:15: Check-in and focus
2:15-2:45: Improvisation through sound scaping and performance
2:45-3:00: Review and closure including tomorrow’s
theme
3:00-4:00: Debrief, planning and media release for trainee
facilitators and support workers.
Day
Two
11:00-12:30:
Training and planning session
(For trainee facilitators and support workers.)
Content will include:
o
Working with the media
o Dealing with challenges
o Workshop resources
o Planning for second workshop.
12:30-1:00:
Lunch
Sound
Circles Workshop
1:00-1:15:
Welcome, ground rules, introductions and warm-up
1:15-1:45: Explore the theme through songwriting and harmony.
1:45-2:00: afternoon-tea
2:00-2:15: Check-in and focus
2:15-2:45: Build on morning session exploring movement,
non-verbal communication and performance.
2:45-3:00: Review and closure including tomorrow’s
theme.
3:00-4:00: Debrief, and planning for trainee facilitators
and support workers.
7:00
PM: Sound Circles dinner/social/networking event
Day
Three
11:00-12:30:
Training and planning session
Content
will include:
o Introduction to internet telephony and web cam technology
and how it will be used to stream monthly workshops to the
Regional Co-ordinator for feedback.
o Other networking opportunities
o Planning for final workshop.
12:30-1:00:
Lunch
Sound
Circles Workshop
(To be facilitated by the regional trainee facilitators.)
1:00-1:15:
Welcome, ground rules, introductions and warm-up
1:15-1:45: Activities delivered by trainee facilitators.
1:45-2:00: Afternoon-tea
2:00-2:15: Check-in and focus
2:15-2:45: Activities delivered by trainee facilitators.
2:45-3:00: Review and closure including tomorrow’s
theme.
3:00-4:00: Debrief and future planning.
Ongoing
Development
o
Weekly workshops continue in the region
o Monthly workshops streamed via Skype to Brisbane co-ordinator
and facilitators for support.
o Regular teleconferences with facilitators from all regions
for networking and support.
o Annual face-to-face facilitator forum for skill development
and networking.
o Three visits from experienced facilitators to support
the trainees
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