Angela toning in Harmonic Presence workshop, April 2026

You may know that for the last few years I’ve focused on reclaiming my voice. The human voice is one of the most important ways we connect with other beings, and somehow I’d lost my connection with my own. My journey began several years ago with two retreats with Vocal Transformation, and continued with an advanced Feldenkrais® training in listening. I still get excited listing all the parts of the human body where we listen: ears, skin, muscles, blood, lymphatic fluid, fascia, and of course, the skeleton.

My personal pilgrimage has continued this spring with two voice experiences in France: a harmonic presence retreat with the composer David Hykes and three days at Taizé, an ecumenical Christian retreat center where prayer is sung three times a day.

Harmonic Presence

The first experience was at a 12th-century farmhouse in the Loire valley. Imagine a white-walled, orange-ceilinged room, ten people gathered in a circle, creating harmonics with their voices. When it’s just you, it’s like singing chords with yourself. When it’s ten people, wow. Chords upon chords, vibrating in your body and the space. Guided by a kind, wise man who’s steeped in this way of listening and toning for decades. When you’re not gathered for practice, there are delicious, homemade meals. (See the photo of nettle soup gathered and cooked by one of the participants. Yum!)

Here’s a taste of what the harmonics sound like in one of David Hykes’ compositions.

Taizé

And now, join me at Taizé, a tiny village in Burgundy. Feel yourself seated on the floor or a bench along the walls, the lay brothers seated centrally, in a church on the scale of a cathedral but simply adorned, many small candles flickering on the altar wall. You’re surrounded by 2,000 people, mostly between the ages of 18 and 35 (Taizé differentiates between this age group and older adults, who are also welcomed in smaller numbers). And you begin to sing together the first chant, in four-part harmony. Feel how you might begin to resonate after an hour.

Here’s a taste of one of my favorite chants.

Our English-speaking discussion group included participants from Estonia, the UK, Poland, USA, the Netherlands, Spain, and Portugal.