Active Programs

Healing through music is a powerful way to help individuals treat, cope, and transcend physical, emotional, cognitive and social challenges. Music can be a portal.

It can rekindle memories and make new ones. It can create a point of focus that, in effect, lifts a person into another way of seeing and experiencing life and the world around them. It can help manage pain and ease fear. It can help one process and navigate heartbreak, grief, and other complex emotions. It can lift spirits and can be a profound avenue for creativity, self expression and transformation. Music can become one’s legacy.

Here you will find our current active programs and information will be added as new programs become available.

San Quentin Prison Fall Semester

16 week Finding Your Voice Songwriting Program

The participants original songs will be curated with uplifting messages of hope, healing, and stories of personal transformation. Recordings of these songs will take place during this class series and will comprise a full length album for release to the public.

CURRICULUM OUTLINE

16 week program, 2 hours per class

Block 1 (Classes 1-4): Getting Started
Block 2 (Classes 5-8): Songwriting
Block 3 (Classes 9-14): Recording
Block 4 (Classes 15-16): Rehearsal & Performance

Cancer Care Point

Finding Your Voice 6 Week Class Series with Essence

Please join us for a 6 week dive into your own creativity using voice, guitar/ukulele, lyric and songwriting as a platform to tell your story.

Whether you are a seasoned songwriter looking to take your music to the next level or if you have never written a song before in your life but have always wanted to, this is a great opportunity to jumpstart your creative process and generate new original content in a supportive and inspiring group setting. All ages and all levels are welcome.

You will learn to:

Navigate and grow your vocal range, accessing and seamlessly transitioning through chest, mix, and head voices with a variety of healthy vocal techniques
Improve pitch, tone, placement, and develop your unique identity and authentic expression
Learn techniques to anchor and support our breath
Set clear intentions and create structure to attain your goals moving forward
Silence the inner critic
Listen to carefully chosen literary selections written by great authors and celebrated songwriters – read aloud – and use them as prompts to jumpstart free writing exercises generating kernels that spark new original creative works
Learn to write more engaging lyrics with an emphasis on imagery, metaphor, story telling and honesty
Break into pairs for a guided collaborative songwriting experience that will yield a completed new song
Perform your new composition for the group
Build confidence as performers
Become better communicators by giving and receiving constructive feedback
Develop and build connections with other creatives

The goal is to create an inspiring and safe space for participants to have fruitful, nourishing creative experiences.

Ligaya Day Program

Day Services for People with Learning, Behavioral and Psychological Challenges