Music that Makes Community is excited to return to Cincinnati to offer a three-day song leader training workshop! St. Simon’s Episcopal Church, Lincoln Heights and Christ Episcopal Church, Glendale partner to host this inspiring gathering centered in African and African-American musical traditions and leadership practices. The workshop also includes story sharing inspired by Becoming Beloved Community, a national effort of the Episcopal Church to respond to racial injustice and grow a community of reconcilers, justice-makers, and healers.

Additional events are being planned around the workshop to deepen the conversation and inspire faithful action.

Nehemiah Luckett, Chanda Rule, Paul Vasile, and local Music that Makes Community facilitators will lead worship, plenaries, small groups, and reflection to help you add the valuable tool of paperless leading to your community’s singing practice. Learn practical skills and diverse repertoire, and explore how paperless music can strengthen and enrich worship and community life.

The workshop begins with dinner on Wednesday evening and ends with a Lunch Eucharist on Saturday. Christ Church, Glendale will host the workshop; special evening events for the wider community will be hosted by St. Simon of Cyrene (just 2.5 miles away).

Click here to view the workshop schedule.

Music that Makes Community encourages and support practices of communal singing and learning. Watch this short video to learn about the unique work we're doing around the United States and Canada. 

Individual Registration Rate: $250
Congregational Registration Rate: $500 (Up to 4 individuals from the same congregation)
Congregational Sponsor: $1,000 (Up to 8 individuals from the same congregation)

The rate covers continental breakfast and lunch on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, dinner on Wednesday and Thursday, and all workshop materials. 

There are several lodging options for out-of-town guests.

• The Glendalia is a small hotel around the corner from Christ Church, Glendaleand features 6 small apartments;
• Hyatt Place Sharonville is 1.8 miles from Christ Church, Glendale and has single and double hotel rooms;
• Transfiguration Convent and Spirituality Center is a little more than a mile from Christ Church, Glendale. Single rooms/shared bathrooms are available for women only because of other retreats at that time;
• Airbnb options are also plentiful in the area.

The workshop is generously supported by the Diocese of Southern Ohio and discounted rates are available for churches in the Diocese. Scholarships are also available for individuals and faith communities with limited resources, as well as seniors. Contact Jane Gerdsen in the Diocesan office to learn more.

We'll take a summer break in July and August. Interested singers in the area are welcome to join us again on Wednesday, September 4th at 7 p.m. Please join us if you love to sing in a group in unison or improvised harmony, without printed words or music. Feel free to bring a song to teach.

For more information contact organizer Fiona Vidal-White.

Music that Makes Community is excited to visit Montana, sharing paperless (oral/aural tradition) music and leadership practices! Hope Lutheran Church in Bozeman will host this time of musical and spiritual nourishment as we join voices and hearts in song. MtMC's Executive Director, Paul Vasile will offer leadership, inviting participants into communal learning and reflection.

We begin on Friday evening at 7 p.m. with an introduction to paperless music and lots of singing together. We'll continue on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. with a workshop exploring how and why we sing together, noticing way our bodies and voices are present when we learn through thoughtful modeling and generous invitation. Together we'll experience how the energy we create through singing affects what we do in worship as a whole, as well as other parts of our human lives. We'll share morning prayer, participatory learning time, and reflection on paperless song forms and leadership practices. 

Music That Makes Community encourages and support practices of communal singing and learning. Watch this short video to learn about the unique work we're doing around the United States and Canada. 

$80 for clergy (including new to ministry) 
$60 for lay people, LPAs and retired clergy

Participants/Congregations will be responsible for their own lodging on Thursday night.

The event is sponsored by the Northern Rockies Institute of Theology, a continuing theological education ministry of the Montana Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. NRIT exists to provide and promote lifelong learning for the people of the Montana Synod (and their neighbors), for the purpose of equipping them in their lives of ministry.

Sharing the Song is designed for community song leaders seeking to strengthen and refine their skills so they can encourage beautiful music-making wherever they go. We're grateful you are planning to join us!

WHAT WILL WE DO?

• Sing and learn together, experiencing music from a wide range of musical traditions, cultures, and styles. 
• Under the guidance of master teacher Alice Parker, explore how song leaders lift song off the page through careful study of melody, text, musical style, and historic context.  Learn more about Alice's sessions here. 
• Reflect on the energetic and physical dimensions of song leadership with Paul Vasile, focusing on holistic leadership practices that support dynamic communication. Learn more about Paul's sessions here. 
• Participants will practice leading the group in song and receive feedback and coaching from Alice and Paul.
• Build a community of practice and support, as we connect with like-minded colleagues and peers from variety of contexts and musical backgrounds. 
• Commit to serving as community builders and teachers in our home context, creating spaces where singing together is a beautiful, inclusive, and life-giving experience for all. 

The individual registration rate for Sharing the Song is $600 per person. This includes all workshop materials, dinner on Wednesday evening, lunch on both Thursday and Friday, as well as refreshments throughout the workshop. The registration fee does not includes transportation or lodging.

The rate for Auditors is $450 per person. Auditors are invited to participate in learning sessions but will not have the opportunity to lead the group in song or recieve personal coaching from Alice and Paul. The rate includes all workshop materials, dinner on Wednesday evening, lunch on both Thursday and Friday, as well as refreshments throughout the workshop. The registration fee does not includes transportation or lodging.

APPLY HERE!

We're grateful to again be hosted by Eden Theological Seminary in Webster Groves, just west of the city of St. Louis,  MO. We'll gather in the Werlhi Chapel at the heart of the campus, a comfortable, acoustically resonant space for singing and learning. 

Lodging is not included in the registration fee but we have secured a discounted rate of $159/night with the Homewood Suites by Hilton® St. Louis Galleria, a 10-minute drive from the seminary. Details will be provided upon acceptance to the program. Please note: we are not responsible for lodging participants and cannot guarantee the discounted rate if you fail to reserve a room in a timely manner. 

Several meals are covered by your registration fee, including a welcome dinner on Wednesday evening at 5:30 p.m., lunch on Thursday and Friday, as well as coffee, tea, water, snacks and other treats during the day. Continental breakfast is provided by the hotel.

Participants are responsible for dinner on Thursday and Friday evening. There are excellent, eclectic dining options a short walk (5-10 minutes) from the Eden campus. A list will be provided when you arrive. 

Join members of the Vancouver Practice Group and Paul Vasile for a mini-workshop focused on Songs for Healing and Wholeness. On the 74th anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima, we'll explore what we sing when life is painful, anxious, and traumatic. How can the practice of singing together help comfort and mend our communities, and even inspire us to compassionate response? 

All are welcome to attend. Please RSVP below so we know to expect you!

This event is generously sponsored by The Anglican Diocese of New Westminster. 

Join MtMC's Executive Director Paul Vasile for a mini-workshop focused on Songs for Healing and Wholeness. We'll explore what we sing when life is painful, anxious, and traumatic, and together experience how singing can comfort and mend our communities, even inspiring us to compassionate response.

The cost of the workshop is $20 (cash or check) at the door. Please RSVP below so we know to expect you!

Paul will share song at the 9:30 a.m. Sunday Eucharist at St. Mark's Episcopal Church and at a Community SING at the Uma Center.

This event is graciously hosted by St. Mark's Episcopal Church.

Join our Chicago Area Practice Group: Northside for their quarterly gathering. All are welcome to sing with others, learn new tunes, and strengthen your song-leading skills! This month we'll meet in the backyard of the Bethany UCC parsonage with some refreshments (4250 N. Paulina). If inclement weather, we’ll meet in the sanctuary.

Contact group organizer Spencer Foon with any questions!

We're excited to announce a new Interfaith Practice Group in the Hudson Valley. We'll gather in the Rectory behind St. John's Episcopal Church. Bring a song to share and/or one that you'd like to learn to teach! 

For more info, please call Ana Hernandez at (914) 357-0365 and leave a message.  

The group meets monthly on the Sunday after the full moon (mainly the 3rd Sunday of the month).

We're excited to announce a new Interfaith Practice Group in the Hudson Valley. We'll gather in the Rectory behind St. John's Episcopal Church. Bring a song to share and/or one that you'd like to learn to teach! 

For more info, please call Ana Hernandez at (914) 357-0365 and leave a message.  

The group meets monthly on the Sunday after the full moon (mainly the 3rd Sunday of the month).

Join the Portland Practice Group for a time of singing and learning at St. Ansgar Lutheran Church.

All are welcome to share song and practice paperless their leadership skills in a supportive, gracious setting! RSVP below to let us know you're planning to attend!