Just back from a great week in Ubud, Bali. Ubud may be noisy, relentless and crowded with tourists – all vying for the same piece of cracked pavement or avoiding the same holes in the road – a mix of Western hedonism, healing modalities and polite but compromised locals…but Narasoma Retreat, down an alley in the middle of town is an oasis of calm. Until a bunch of singers from Australia and NZ let rip on a gospel song or two in the normally serene yoga shala. It was a lovely experience, working with a mostly female contingent – the one bloke who initially admitted to some trepidation about this whole lark turned out to be a very adroit tenor voice, so I stuck to a soprano/alto/tenor repertoire, or adapted some 4-part pieces, all of which seemed to work well.
The only thing approaching a downside? the monkeys ate the flower mandala…
We all went to the women’s kecak performance, which I found very beautiful – maybe not as rhythmically vivid as the last male group I hears, but with sweet and soulful voices. Captivating. A big thank you to Josie Tanham who not only taught yoga and organised the whole event, but sang brilliantly. Thanks too to Bo Wong for photos, and to all who came from all over to give yourselves over so willingly to the experience.
We plan to replicate this wonderful experience in September 2025…so keep your eye on my calendar or sign up for the newsletter…
