December 31, 2019
Dear you,
I was going to write the usual “out with the old, in with the new” as a subject heading, but I realized that it was inaccurate. That which is oldest, the ancient, eternal and timeless, is never truly out. The source of everything that ever was and ever will be exists right now.
To transcend the limiting framework of old vs new, I look to trees, books and of course, music. What lessons have these enduring entities taught me? Change is inevitable yet mostly invisible; small habits compound into character over time; and although I have already seen more trees, read more books, and sung more songs than I can count, that is still less than 1% of all the trees, books and songs that are available to be experienced on the planet.
With that in mind, I’m less concerned about making something new (check out the latest, hottest tree in the field of eternity!) and more focused on making something meaningful that serves as a blessing for you and those among the billions of other people on our planet for whom this message resonates.
So let’s sing together in 2020. In small groups, large groups, and one on one. Let’s sing to the trees, to the earth, to the waters, to each other. Let’s invoke the healing words from books that were once gathering dust on the shelf. Thank you for joining me on this journey thus far. Happy new year (on the eternal space time continuum)!
| 1. Photo retrospective (left to right, top to bottom): Vocal Tapestry at American Folk Art Museum (a workshop for people dealing with dementia and their caregivers), Open Sing at Carnegie Hall, Sounding NYC at Central Park, working with students at Rosie O’Donnell’s youth program RTKids, a question from my performance thesis Overtones at Pratt Institute, a performance at Neil Young’s tour The Monsanto Years, leading a workshop at Bobby McFerrin’s annual Circlesongs Retreat, leading a workshop at the Retiro de Música Circular near São Paulo in Brazil, and a Moving Star ensemble pic. Thanks to all of you who have participated in workshops, performances, and other vocal gatherings throughout the years! 2. Thank you to everyone who has signed up for vocal coaching! There are still slots available. Feel more grounded and confident in the powerful capacities of your voice by investing in a session with me. Clients leave my sessions feeling revitalized, inspired, more in touch with themselves, and a deeper understanding of what their voices can do. Contact me at lushtongue@gmail.com to book a coaching session, or a free 15 minute exploratory phone consultation. 3. Thanks to those who have purchased a Lush Tongue merch item! Receive a 10% discount using the promo code LT2020. Here is the link: https://teespring.com/stores/lushtonguemerch. 4. Stay tuned for info about the next Open Sing and other events! |
| Who is Onome? Onome is a vocalist and interdisciplinary sound artist of Urhobo heritage in the Niger Delta. She incorporates improvisation into her practice as a tool to expand consciousness, creativity, and personal development. Through her audience-interactive performances, workshops and sound installations, Onome embodies joy, enchantment, and infinite possibility. She is an artist-in-residence at Carnegie Hall as a core member of the vocal improvisation lab and ensemble, Moving Star. She has performed sound poetry at hundreds of venues nationally, recorded soundscapes for podcasts, and created vocal film scores. She received her MFA in Performance Studies at Pratt Institute. She is the artistic director for Lush Tongue, a project that encompasses improvisation based on a repertoire of songs by women composers, sound healing, singing immersions, workshops, vocal coaching, retreats, and concerts. She facilitates community vocal immersions at concert halls, conferences, galleries, museums, schools, cultural centers, shelters, prisons, parks, churches, wherever voices gather. |
| For booking inquiries, contact lushtongue@gmail.com. Thank you for reading the Lush Tongue newsletter. Wanna stay? Hooray! Please forward this newsletter to your loved ones. Gotta go? Do so below. Love and gratitude, Onome |