Stillpoint for the Solstice: A Free online Event featuring We Play Well Together Instruments
Stillpoint for the Solstice: A Gathering for Sound, Movement & Meditation
Facilitad by: Joule L'Adara & Monique Schubert
With Special Guest Appearences By: Treya Lam & Junauda Petrus-Nasah
We invite you to join us in community as we pause to go deep, deep within: journeying to the stillpoint at our center. This is the resting place of the soul.
At the end of this tumultuous year, we come together on the eve before the Solstice, to sit in presence with one another. We acknowledge where we are and how much we've been through. We will release and empty out all that's been held within us: sounding the shadows so that as the wheel turns into the next solar year, we open up space for what we desire to bring in. By going through this vibrational process together, we may more easefully come into alignment, cohesiveness, and illumination.
You'll be guided through a series of participatory invitations utilizing movement, voice, breath, and deep listening. These will include: gentle yoga poses, guided breathwork, vocal sounding, and listening to live performances of inspired poetry, song, and therapeutic sound instruments. You may chose your level of participation: whether it's laying down and listening as a sound bath, or actively moving and vocalizing. Each invitation is designed to bring you into deep awareness of your self, while receiving support from the collective.
This meditational journey will last about an hour with participants' mics on mute. After the facilitation concludes, we will stay and open up mics for those who may wish to to be seen, heard, and witnessed with optional sharing in the group space.
"The longest night gifts us with time to enter the darkness, fully. The stillness behind action gathers as we empty and trust in our renewal." - Oak Chezar, Mother Tongue Ink
This online event will take place live on Zoom starting at the following times:
Sunday, Dec. 20th:
US: 2pm Hawaii/ 4pm Pacfic/ 5pm Mountain/ 6pm Central/ 7pm Eastern
Monday, Dec. 21st: 12am UK , 1am EUR, 11am VIC/NSW, 10am QLD
For other time zones click HERE to find 12am UTC
REGISTER FOR FREE HERE
About the Presenters:
Monique Schubert, MFA, E-RYT 500, is a Kripalu certified yoga teacher and the founder of OM Society, a lifestyle wellness company that expands the reach of yoga and mindfulness through workshops, classes and special events. She sees life as an extended project to make the world a kinder and more beautiful place. She uses the tools of art, yoga and music to educate, inspire, and connect.
For almost 20 years Monique has taught yoga and mindfulness in the New York City area. Monique weaves her background in visual arts into her mindfulness teaching and has brought yoga to diverse cultural spaces including Socrates Sculpture Park, Studio Museum in Harlem, Museum of Contemporary African Diasporic Art, Rush Arts Philanthropic, and the Fashion Institute of Technology. Through collaborations with non-profits, museums and schools Monique creates engaging public programs for young people and adults. Monique is in her 12th year teaching yoga, mindfulness and stress management at the Bronx Community College, and currently she works with the Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health as a teacher trainer.
Monique is also a member of the Resistance Revival Chorus, as group of more than 60 women who unite to sing songs from various protest traditions, such as the Civil Rights, Labor and the Women’s movement. The message of the chorus is one that resonates with Monique from a yogic perspective as well, the idea that joy is a necessity of life and, in the words of poet Toi Derricotte, ‘Joy is an act of Resistance.’
Treya Lam is a classically trained multi-instrumentalist and songwriter whose cinematic songs and ethereal vocals are built on Nina Simone-inspired piano, meditative guitar and lush chamber arrangements. Treya’s debut album, Good News, was released via Kaki King’s label, Short Stuff Records. Produced by Kaki (who plays multiple instruments throughout the album), the album was recorded with array an of talented female musicians, most notably Catherine Popper (Jack White, Norah Jones) on upright bass, and mixer Erin Tonkon (David Bowie, Esperanza Spalding). Mastered by Sarah Register, Good News is an instant classic, full of the kind of songwriting and raw talent that has never gone out of style, as well as a message of love and longing.
Treya was one of five artists selected for the 2019 Joe’s Pub Working Group residency and is an active member of the Resistance Revival Chorus. She frequently performs with the Big Quiet and is developing a musical as an Associate Artist with the eco-theatre group Superhero Clubhouse. Lam seeks out extraordinary venues and has performed original music at the Prospect Park Bandshell, American Museum of Natural History, New York Botanical Gardens, Garfield Park Conservatory, MoCA Museum and the New York Public Library. Treya has shared stages with Ani Difranco, Yo-Yo Ma and the late jazz pianist Billy Taylor as well as her frequent collaborations with Kaki King.
Learn more about her work at: treyamakesmusic.com
Junauda Petrus-Nasah is a creative activist, writer, playwright, and multi-dimensional performance artist who is born on Dakota land, West-Indian descended, and African-sourced. Her work centers around Black wildness, -futurism, ancestral healing, sweetness, spectacle and shimmer.
Petrus-Nasah has written works for the stage, screen and page, employing poetics and experiences re-membered via ancestral dreaming and research of their lost stories. She is inspired by her parents and ancestors who immigrated from the Caribbean bringing their magic and trauma with them, and her art ripples with their legacy. She is influenced by the Middle passage and diaspora, Black folks in Minneapolis, ancestral magic, and stories of queerness and womanhood within these contexts. Speculative fiction and magical realist elements are central to her work.
Her debut novel, The Stars and the Blackness Between Them was published by Penguin Random House in 2019, and was a 2020 winner of a Coretta Scott King Honor Award. Petrus lives in Minneapolis with her wife, Ngowo Nasah, and family. Learn more about her work at: junauda.com
Joule L’Adara, MFA, is an experimental vocalist, holistic vocal coach, and sound facilitator based in New York City. She is the founder of Sounding Circles, offering sound-based practices that support well-being and transformational development. Since 2009, she has offered her unique voice facilitation training to sound practitioners through live workshops, retreats, and online courses. Her vocal meditation programs have been featured nationally at the New York Open Center, Integral Yoga Institute, Donna Karan’s Urban Zen, WeWork Wellness, Unplug Meditation, The Green Spa, Naturopathica, The Dorot Institute, New York City’s Community Healthcare Network, Planned Parenthood, The WOOM Center, Bread & Yoga, The Samadhi Center for Yoga and Meditation Denver, Sound Meditation Presents in San Francisco with Guy Douglass, The Globe Institute San Francisco, Community Arts Partnership (CAP) Program in Los Angeles, and at Kalani Oceanside Retreat Hawaii.
Joule is also an official US trainer for feeltone instruments: a German-based builder of beautifully handcrafted mediation monochords. This is a drone instrument that produces a cascade of heavenly harmonics which supports the body to come into renewal throuh deep relaxation. Joule offers monochord training intensives and online courses, as well as serving as an ambassador for feeltone. She’s been featured with the instruments on The Today Show, New York 1, at the Guggenheim Museum with The Big Quiet, and as part of San Francisco’s Sound Healing Symphony. Joule is a trained classical singer who in the past performed with The Metropolitan Opera and as a soloist in Carnegie Hall.
Joule leads a weekly free online therapeutic vocal sound gathering every Sunday. It's a chance to come together and connect with others in circle beyond words, or difference, and find cohesiveness through sound. Join our community at: Sounding Circles Sunday
REGISTER FOR FREE HERE
Blog posts
Explore our Earth (C-Major) Collection
All of our instrument groups: Monochord, Tinka Tongs, Kalimbas & Sansulas, Koshi and Zaphir Chimes and Zenko metal drums are available in this tuning
Explore our Air (A-minor) Collection
The products are already available and the videos going to be released Spring 2025
Explore our Water (d-minor) Collection
Learn more about the Instruments of this collection and watch our bautiful videos
Explore our Fire (G-Major) Collection
The products are already available and the videos going to be released Spring 2025
A few years ago I became casually interested in the Kalimba because of its simplicity of design and playability. Without experience or a good point of reference I needed to taste a lot of flavors to sort out the choices. For a while, my discards kept the local Goodwill store supplied with inventory.
The feeding frenzy stopped when I discovered Hokema. Build and material quality is professional grade. The tines are not stiff, so you can play at any intensity without stressing a thumb nails. Resonance from the solid wood base and the resulting sustain are simply stunning. Even the high notes sing, unlike the flat 'tapping an aluminum pan' sound from my discards.
I first purchased the B-17, and later the smaller B-17 Mini. Comments above apply to both. There is no problem holding, playing, or carrying around either instrument. The Mini's smaller footprint might be more comfortable for small hands. I just like the smaller package. Because the B-17's wood block is wider, it has more space between the tines. Both instruments appear to use the same tine assembly materials, but the Mini has a shorter cross bar. The Mini's tine spacing is grouped, but they can be adjusted to make the spacing more uniform like the B-17. In that mode, even with the smaller block the tine spacing is noticeably wider than some other Kalimbas I've tried. My thumbs are average width for a 5'8" person and my nails are normally rounded (not pointed), and I have no trouble playing individual notes.
Tablature is available around the net for 17-key Kalimbas (RiffSpot has a nice ebook), so you can play tunes without reading music on both the B-17 and B-17 Mini.
Hokema kalimbas are as nice sounding as any I have ever heard. WPWT provides fast shipping and quick responses to inquires.
Enjoyable to use and very good quality for more percussive techniques.
These chimes are exquisite, and We Play Well Together is a great company to purchase from.
Highly recommended!
I have a Monolina for my Sound Healing practice, but wanted a monilini for myself. I am so happy with my purchase. It is perfect!
I bought a Sansula deluxe at We play well together. The service was exceptionnal and I received it within 4 days. The Sansula's sound is simply magic. So rich and vibrant. It creates an ambiance of it's own.
Really happy and satisfied about this purchase.
I just took the week-long monochord training with Joule and fell in love with my Monolina. Joule is a fun, engaging and knowledgeable teacher who brings deep reverence to her instruments and the art of playing them. We got to experiment with and experience all the different ways of expressing through our monochords and came away with a proven, complete and beautiful 45-minute session we can now offer. I highly recommend this class.
Quick delivery, wonderful company and lovely instrument!
It is always a pleasure to speak to Gabriella and her customer service is top notch
this set is legit sounds like little angels 😇
I am new to the Monolina world but have been around stringed instruments all my life. I'm so excited about its possibilities as a solo instrument for use in Reiki, as well as in an ensemble setting. It helps me to meditate as well.
R
Used Monolina XL Low C We have a full set of crystal bowls, and the low C monochord adds a wonderful depth to their sounding. I also find myself humming/singing over the low C drone in a quite natural way. Very happy with my new instrument.
I've wanted to purchase a Sansula ever since I first heard one, two years ago. I finally purchased one and upon receiving it was disappointed in it's sound. Customer service was extremely helpful and promptly replaced it. Couldn't have been a better experience. I highly recommend the instrument and the company is top notch.
Works well. Delighted to have the ability to tune my Sansula myself.
We Play well together has been a resource for instruments for, at least, 5 years. The quality of the instruments, customer service, kindness and expertise of the staff has been a huge bonus and blessing in our interactions. I am grateful for their service, friendliness and flexibility. thank you so very much VLamura
These mallets are super fun to use and I love the sounds they create. I purchased a pair of each set of mallets and I love them all so much, I'm planning on keeping the pair I thought I would send back originally.
I have a set and love these so much. They are well made, and the sound is solid and carries well in small and large spaces. Highly recommend!
Wonderful instrument. It’s easy to travel with and well crafted. Customer service is wonderful as well. Very responsive. I am always impressed with the attention to customer service and care of the instruments. This instruments complement my crystal singing bowls and monalina nicely.
My G Monolina is perfect! Beautiful to play in a group, as well as on the body.
Absolutely in love, but should have ordered the bag! Ordering it now as it is was too fragile to travel with without the bag.
The instrument brigs such an amazing quality and super easy to play
I recently purchased a D Monolina. Meditative and meditative; a full immersion sound experience that simply wraps you in a beautiful feeling and sound. What an incredible instrument this is! I highly recommend purchasing one, or more, for meditation, relaxation, or sound baths.
This set elevates one’s instruments to the next level. Having all these components really sets one up for success and allows room for growth to grow into your sound practice.
The versatility that comes with having the leg extensions allows the player to be comfortable in a variety of ways while playing. The mallets add additional ways to play.
Tuning is a breeze with the template. When not being played or on the go with this monolina, the mats keep everything safe and the backpack makes it so you can take it to the studio or out into nature to play.
I can’t say enough great things about it, it’s a must have in the sound tool kit for sure.
The floor model sale price feels too good to be true for such a fabulous instrument. So easy to create varied, beautiful sounds. This is the 3rd instrument I've purchased from WPWT and they're always efficient, friendly and helpful.