Reset your vibration with a restorative sound journey performed by Nicky and Peter at this year's Creative Mental Health Forum and Self Care Retreat.
Essence of Place sound journey
Nature recordings, crystal bowls, chimes, percussion, live instruments guitar and voice are used to create evocative therapeutic soundscapes and music pieces that flow into each other to take the listener into deep relaxation.
You are invited to immerse yourself in the magic of sound.
Sound has been used as a powerful and effective tool for helping to
improve health and wellbeing for thousands of years. More recently, science has provided valuable insight into these ancient techniques.
Research has shown that people
experience deep relaxation,
reduced anxiety and stress,
improved sleep
and hormonal balances in the body.
This is due to sound inducing an
Altered State of Consciousness, similar to meditation.
During a sound bath, the brain gets a chance to experience no thought as it is focused on the Sound.
The brain shifts into Theta brain waves. This wave is characterised mainly with light sleep, rapid eye movement (REM) dreams and hallucinations.
The brain uses this state to exercise itself, rather like working out muscles to make them stronger and to release over all tension. In this state your brain cells reset their sodium/potassium levels. A brief period of Theta (5 to 15 min) a day can restore the ratio to normal, resulting in mental refreshment.
Sound Therapy has been used with positive results for a wide range of illnesses such as chronic pain, depression and anxiety.
Sound Therapy not only helps with physical illness, it can also help balance the emotions and quieten a busy mind.
About NICKY DE GRUCHY and PETER BAIRD
Nicky and Peter have been partners in music, life and art for over 30 years and have been performing, teaching and creating together as well as pursuing their own projects. In the past 20 years they performed extensively as the duo Little Oberon. Their creative journey has always been strongly connected to nature and on a trip to the snowy river in 2006 they found themselves spontaneously composing a piece of music while camped on its banks. This was the birth of Essence of Place, a project that sees them traveling to places across Australia and composing music arising spontaneously from their relationship with the landscape.
In 2011 Nicky and Peter were part of the Shearwater Festival on Phillip Island. This was an international event celebrating the awesome journey of the shearwater birds that complete an annual journey of some 18,000 kilometres around the Pacific Ocean and breed on the islands of Bass Strait each Summer. The festival involved Indigenous Elders from Australia and North America who had ancient relationships with the bird at both ends of its journey. As part of this festival, Nicky and Peter were introduced to the Aboriginal practice of Deep Listening that they experienced as a practice of listening in silence with full attention in both nature and Deep Listening Circles with others. As well as participating in circles with Elders they played in the Deep Listening Band. Essence of Place combined with the sensibilities of Deep listening have seen them play their music for First Nations People presenting papers at university, at the International Bush Adventure Therapy Conference in Sydney, accompanying yoga classes, in concert with ‘Sound Journeys’, which involve people sitting or lying for an hour or so as they are taken on a ‘Sound Journey’ that integrates therapeutic soundscapes with Essence of Place compositions.
In 2012 Nicky completed diplomas in both Voice Sound Therapy and Holistic Voice Therapy with the British Academy of Sound Therapy to formalise the healing power of music and sound she had witnessed in 30 years of teaching singing. This scientific understanding of the healing properties of sound combine with the artistic sensibilities of many years of performing and the intuitive connection to nature in the music they offer.
https://www.essenceofplace.com.au
WE ARE THRILLED TO WELCOME NICKY AND PETER
AS FACILITATORS AT THE
2023 CREATIVE MENTAL HEALTH FORUM
AND SELF CARE RETREAT.
WE WELCOME
CREATIVE THERAPISTS,
ALLIED HEALTH PROFESSIONALS
AND EDUCATORS WHO:
want to learn more about creative mental health,
be inspired by holistic and diverse workshops and presenters,
and “refill your well” with time in a beautiful nurturing environment and space for self care.
