Play Your Way Home
Sounding Through the Veil
Sounding Through the Veil
Sound and ritual with the ones we come from.
Halloween weekend in Black Mountain.
Sound and ritual with the ones we come from.
Halloween weekend in Black Mountain.
October 30 to November 1, 2026
Friday evening through Sunday noon · Quietude Retreat Center, Black Mountain, NC
At the end of October the veil goes thin.
We're going to spend that weekend making sound about where we come from.
Where we come from
It's a mixed bag
It's a mixed bag
There's a lot to be grateful for back there. And there's usually something else too. A habit. A weight. A way of bracing.
What I come from is both a challenge and a floor to stand on. Both, at once.
This weekend has room for all of it.
Both directions
Why this isn't just remembering
Why this isn't just remembering
Some of what's stuck on this side of the veil can only be moved by those on the other side.
And some of what's stuck on the other side can only be moved by us.
That's what Halloween night is for.
The instrument
Why sound, not a talking circle
Why sound, not a talking circle
Talking about a complicated family makes a person take a position on it. Sound doesn't ask anybody to pick.
The gratitude and the damage can go into the same minute and both of them get to be true.
It doesn't have to be good. It has to be true, and true is not a skill.
The weekend
Three days
Three days
Friday night. We open the circle and sound what each of us brought.
Saturday morning. The altar goes up. Storytelling, with the instruments answering.
Saturday afternoon. You make something out of what surfaced.
Saturday night, Halloween. The ritual the group built that afternoon, and a celebration.
Sunday morning. A long stretch of playing together. Then you say what you're carrying forward, and the room says it back.
Bring an instrument if you have one, and photographs of your people who have died, for the altar.
Fit
Who this isn't for
Who this isn't for
Not a music lesson. Not a performance.
Not a purely celebratory honoring, because this one makes room for the hard parts.
Not therapy. I'm a musician and a facilitator, and this weekend makes contact rather than settling anything.
Open to any adult. Therapists, healers and health practitioners especially welcome, particularly people working in recovery, nervous system regulation and trauma healing. You would be coming as a person, not as a professional.
No alcohol on the property, and for most people it's a commuter weekend.
In the room
What people have said
What people have said
“It was wonderful... the first introduction I had into this program that really opened up the gates. Good fellowship, good discussions and a lot of good music!”
Jan Mullen, after the Living Musically retreat, Mount Mitchell, 2023
“I expected much greater unease about my musical stupidity. Instead, I found myself wanting to contribute some of what I have learned by being open to change. I was amazed that within a period of ten hours, each of us was comfortable enough to reveal who we think we are.”
Roger Beaumont, after a workshop series
"For me, these 3 sessions gave a glimpse into the world of sound and community... They gave a deeper understanding of what it means to Listen carefully, Feel Deeply, and Play... with sound and metaphorically."
Cristine Westfeldt, after a workshop series
The practical part
Dates, place, price
Dates, place, price
Friday Oct 30, reception 6pm, program 7 to 9pm.
Saturday Oct 31, 9am to 9:30pm.
Sunday Nov 1, 8:15am to noon.
Quietude Retreat Center, 1130 Montreat Rd, Black Mountain, NC.
$350. Saturday lunch and dinner included.
Most people drive in. Some lodging may be available on site through the retreat center. Ask if you need it.
Full refund through October 1, half through October 20.
P.S.
Whether you come or not, what matters is that you find a way to practice aligning what you think, feel, say and do together in real time.
If this weekend is a way to practice that for you, you're welcome here.
If not, do find a way that is.