ChantWave Video Intro
March 4, 2010
A short introduction to ChantWave, the practice of singing short phrases as a way of shifting to a wider consciousness, is now available.
Honoring All Of Us
March 4, 2010
March 22nd in Zurich will be the first Honoring All Of Us event, inviting anyone to experience spontaneous songmaking in the context of The Honoring Ceremony.
Upcoming Film
February 19, 2010
What do children, indigenous people and whales have in common? In Search Of The Great Song is a documentary which explores a universal, underlying link of song, our cultural disconnect from singing, and a nascent movement of spontaneous songmaking as a way people are reconnecting to their heart and each other around the world. Filmed in USA, Europe and Australia, featuring authors and musical artists together with children and adults opening to their inner songmaker. Fiscally sponsored by 501 (c)3 nonprofit, Companion Arts.
Developing Program Initiative
February 19, 2010
Strategic planning for the nonprofit Companion Arts is in process. A cultural arts organization founded in 2002 by artist/educator Michael Stillwater and Emmy-award winning film composer Gary Malkin, Companion Arts has initiated two major programs- Care for the Journey and Song Without Borders.
Overall mission and program missions, as well as projects within both programs, are being further refined. Care for the Journey will be re-examined in developing resources and educational events for reducing stress for those caring for others, while Song Without Borders will be reviewed for its healing and connecting potential using song and songmaking, affirming natural creativity while bridging boundaries of belief, religion and culture.
Spontaneous SongMaking for Anxiety Reduction in Patients
February 11, 2010
Reducing anxiety for those with difficult or terminal diagnoses can present a major challenge, resulting in pharmaceutical and other remedies. Responding to patient’s anxieties around the fear of dying, a new therapeutic arts approach, the practice of spontaneous songmaking, is being considered for pilot study in America and Europe.
Developed by Care for the Journey program director Michael Stillwater, SongSourcing™ has been delivered to general audiences in the US and Europe since 1998. By reconnecting a person to aspects of childhood joy and fulfillment, fears of the unknown have been observed to subside. The return of wonder, which spontaneous songmaking can help evoke, provides patients with a better appreciation for the now moment, even with difficult health conditions or in proximity to death.
A 1973 survey published in The London Times found that 41% of the 3000 respondents listed “fear of public speaking” as their number one fear, while 19% listed “death.” With an obvious close correspondence to characteristics found in public speaking, just imagine where singing in public must rank! Add spontaneous singing into the mix- simultaneously composing lyric and melody in the moment in front of others- how might that fare on the ‘fear poll’?
From this perspective, one who ‘faces down the dragon’ of public speaking, singing, or spontaneous singing may experience a reduced level of anxiety when considering their own mortality.
Thus SongSourcing, a language-arts practice of cultivating ‘free space’ in the mind (the domain of spontaneous improvisation, not dominated by the left brain, using both hemispheres in tandem) is a candidate for reconnecting one’s spontaneous songmaker.
SongSourcing for adults (as seen on PBS ‘Healing Quest‘ program) is convincing in its effectiveness on multiple levels (endorsed by neuroscientist Dan Siegel, MD, psychologists Ron Alexander, PhD and Peter Levine, PhD).
In addition to the anxiety-reduction study, Stillwater is exploring the beneficial effects of spontaneous songmaking in elementary schools (cultivating core self-acceptance while promoting healthy relationships), introducing the practice in pilot schools (India, Switzerland, Germany, Great Britain, Mexico, USA)
CD funded by Song Without Borders, fiscally sponsored by 501 (c)3 nonprofit, Companion Arts.
The Honoring at Fernwood- a film
February 5, 2010
The filming of The Honoring Ceremony at Fernwood Cemetery in Mill Valley, the leading green cemetery in California, in November, 2009, is now being edited. Updates will be posted. Filming funded by Song Without Borders, fiscally sponsored by 501 (c)3 nonprofit, Companion Arts.
Song Without Borders management update
February 5, 2010
A new executive director has been hired for Companion Arts, the nonprofit umbrella for Song Without Borders. Susan Osborne, a longtime nonprofit professional and former board member of Companion Arts, has joined the management. Together with her partner, Leland Hoover, a financial management consultant, Susan lives in Boulder, Colorado, which is the home of our new offices for both Companion Arts and its two major initiatives, Care for the Journey and Song Without Borders.
In Search Of The Great Song (film)
January 29, 2010
The film, In Search Of The Great Song, is in process. Film funded by Song Without Borders, fiscally sponsored by 501 (c)3 nonprofit, Companion Arts.
