With the undeniable rise of the EDM movement and our generation’s continuous obsession with the music industry, it’s easy to forget that music has a purpose that extends beyond entertainment.
What if we told you, that beyond the beloved rhythmic nuances that fill concert venues, push us through a tough workout, or tempt us onto the dance floor at the bar, sound can actually provide an incredible healing effect?
Darren Austin Hall has been a Sound Healer for the past 7 or 8 years, as his long-realized love for music evolved into a greater desire to help people awaken their conscious with the healing properties of sound. By doing this, he’s able to further cultivate the current cultural shift for people to explore what it means to be healthy in more than just a physical sense. In fact, sound healing is becoming an extremely popular movement, and Darren is graciously leading the way.
During his sessions, Darren utilizes crystal singing bowls as his primary tool; these bowls emit powerful, relaxing and tranquil sounds and are touted as the most advanced sound healing tools on the planet. While listening to the sounds he creates, your body will enter an instant relaxed state (thanks to the activation of your parasympathetic nervous system). It is believed that this allows us to effectively separate our consciousness from the negative effects of stress and, in many cases, disease. Darren also incorporates a form of intuitive singing to provide musical quality and add another vibrational nuance.
Not sure what we’re talking about? Imagine that relaxed, blissful state you might experience at the end of a yoga class in a warm, dimly lit studio as the instructor’s soft voice carries you further into a state of total ‘zen’. It’s like that… only even more intense. With stress being such a problematic health concern in today’s culture, mindful practices like sound healing are more important (and worth looking into) than ever before.
When Darren teaches his workshops on sound healing, as he will be at this year’s Camp Summerdaze taking place from July 28-30 on a beautiful private property just 30 minutes north of the City, he creates a peaceful environment for science and spirituality to interconnect. Everything in the world is made up of energy and vibrations, and his practice uses this basis as a way to explain what is happening to us on the ‘deepest levels of reality’.
Darren was even given the opportunity to share his practice with a group at TED X Talk in Toronto recently. “We were definitely the odd-balls of the group” he laughed when I asked him about the experience, “but it was such an incredible, profound reception. After we finished, I had people running up to me asking ‘What did you do? My heart opened. I was crying. I’ve never felt anything like that’… they were so taken aback by their experience. This practice really allows people to move away from the emotional repression that so often creates physical ailments, and that’s an incredible thing.”
When asked about his favourite Podcasts to listen to right now, Daren told us that he loves listening to the Bioneers podcasts on eco-spirituality and environmentalism. As for his favourite ways to achieve serenity? He practices daily chanting, ‘grounding’ in nature and inner-body awareness (a la Eckhart Tolle). For his daily meditation practice, Darren likes to meditate in nature to the greatest healing music of all: the sounds of the wild.
“I’m just really excited that Summerdaze is offering a bridge into truly conscious culture”, Darren explains. “They’re taking the idea of a mainstream electronic festival and combining it with leaders in the spirituality and healing industry to finally allow people to experience things that are on the fringe, so to speak.”
Inspired by the outdoor daytime summer parties in London and Ibiza, husband-and-wife duo, Jordan and Nail Zakaria, first established Be Spoke Experience in 2010. The 3-day sleepover event will include a healing sanctuary (massage, Reiki, oracle readings, yoga and meditation), arts and crafts workshops, curated food menus, art markets, a tuck shop, camping, live acts and more than 20 DJs and headliners. Guests can come for the day or camp for the full sleepover experience, but camping spots are limited so get yours now!