FRIDAY, August 9, 2024

[[[4:00-5:15PM, pre-Festival]
SPARROW ON THE GREEN

Woodstock Village Green The poet Sparrow will manage information about the Festival & its environs, including advice on paths to the Opening Ceremony, evening events & the rest of your life. SPECIAL BONUS: Walk with Sparrow up Rock City Road to the Opening of the Festival!]]]

5:30 – 7:00 pm
Community Awakening Opening in ceremony, song & dance

Andy Lee Field moved to Woodstock Community Center due to weather (free admission) Our three days and two nights of events, talks, blessings and music sessions open with gathering in the field where we will call to the elements and directions, activating the Festival in ceremony, song, dance and wishes to form a sound that may heard together and beyond.

Enactments INCLUDE:

Evan Pritchard
Evocation of the elements and Medicine Wheel
Radharani
Heart-Centered Chants and Song-Prayers
Radharani’s accessible, singable songs and invocations are a blend of mantra chant, conscious folk, and heart-opening ballads that honor the divine feminine and timeless wisdom from many traditions.
Guy Beider
Gong Meditation for the Awakening Festival
The sound of the gong will guide you into a state of pure observation, opening your senses and preparing your mind for a transformative experience. Let the deep, immersive vibrations of the gong ground you in the present moment, setting the perfect tone for the Festival ahead.
Tara Samadhi
Invocation in Song, Mantra and Silence + the Sri Argala Stotram on the harmonium honoring the Goddess and all of her forms)
Rev. Matthew Wright
Sufi Dance
Yogmata-Ji
Himalayan Wisdom Song
Nidhi Adhiya-Huba & Kimber Truitt
Wishing Bell: What do you wish to awaken?

We are excited and ready for this superb event. In the event of rain, we have tents and seating at the ready. We have you covered – rain or shine. To be sure of entry and to participate in the Krishna Das experience, buy your tickets as early as possible this week. We have limited capacity, and may have to restrict entry to advance ticket holders.

7:00 pm
Awakening Community Meal

Woodstock Community Center ($5 suggested donation; $10 for meal & dance) Soups, breads, salads + non-alcoholic drinks. All welcome! Special thanks to the following for kindly providing provisions:

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Everyone is welcome to attend. Throughout the weekend, a three-tiered donation system adapted from “The Sliding Scale: A Tool of Economic Justice” by Alexis Cunningfolk will be used. Please pay what you can afford—or more if possible! Your donations support artists and practitioners in our community.
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8:00 - 9:00 pm
Kundalini Cosmic Sound Bath & Light Immersion with Jennifer Drue

Mountainview Studio ($10 suggested donation) Jennifer honor’s the sacred practice of sound healing and meditation, offering a sanctuary to restore balance to mind, body and soul.

8:00 pm
Ecstatic Dance with Avinash

Woodstock Community Center ($5 suggested donation; $10 for meal & dance) Join Avinash Barnes in this form of dance in which the dancers release themselves to the rhythm and move freely as the music takes them, leading to trance and a feeling of ecstasy.

10:00 - 11:00 pm
Fireside Jam with Paul McMahon

ESKFF Nest ($10 suggested donation) Join Paul McMahon & others for this musical gathering in welcome around the fire and more.

SATURDAY, August 10

5:45 am
Sunrise Chanting & Singing within Sacred Sound Chamber

Lenny’ Bee Happy Farm @ 395 Wittenberg Road, Bearsville (donation) We will be chanting and drumming to welcome the sun as we mark the midsummer on our living Earth Mother. The sun rises at 5:30, but it takes the light a little while to get above the mountains so it doesn't shine into the chamber until a bit later. There are signs for Chamber parking. Please pull into the field and park where indicated. Head toward the back of the property, following the string of colored lights. Bring drums, rattles, flutes, whatever you like to make sound with. We will have some extra instruments as well.

9:30 -10: 30 am
Qi Gong

Mothership Gallery ($10 suggested donation) Celeste Graves leads qi gong movements that by their nature are easy to follow, adaptable to people of all ages and states of fitness, and immensely powerful in balancing and harmonizing our physical, mental, and spiritual natures.

Mothership Gallery ($10 suggested donation) Cosmic Bliss is a trio comprised of Kellie Walsh, Tomer Hagay, and DJ Morgana. They guide their guests through tranquil and transformative experiences that harness the power of breathwork, meditation techniques, light language, sound, and music. These journeys aim to connect to one's higher self and provide a sense of calm, peace, and balance. We also work with the body's energy centers, the chakra system, to promote emotional and physical well-being. Each unique journey is curated with a perfect blend of sound, vibration, and guided visual meditation to move one out of a state of disharmony into harmony.

10:30 am - noon
Cosmic Bliss Trinity of Healing

11 am - 12:15 pm
Exploring the Strange New Universe: Quantum Physics
& Spiritual Consciousness with Bob Berman

First Church of Christ, Scientist, 85 Tinker Street, Woodstock (donation) What does quantum theory tell us about consciousness? If evidence of the behavior of atomic particles has changed our view of matter, what are the implications for spiritual practice? Astronomer and author Bob Berman will explain the most amazing astronomy discoveries of the past 30 years. His talk will be followed by a conversation on the parallels between the findings of quantum physics and spiritual concepts of the nature of reality. Bob Berman is the astronomy editor of the Old Farmers Almanac, author of 12 popular books, host of the weekly Strange Universe on NPR, director of the summer astronomy program at Yellowstone Park, and writer of a long-lived weekly column in the Woodstock Times and Hudson Valley One. He taught astrophysics at Marymount College and was a guest on Late Night with David Letterman and the Today Show. He is known for his informal, humorous, yet mind-stretching lecture style.

Noon - 3:30; 6:30 - 10:00 pm
SPARROW ON THE GREEN

Woodstock Village Green The poet & artist Sparrow will manage information about the Festival & its environs, including advice on paths to the immediate & evening events—& more on the rest of your life.

12:00 - 6:00 pm
Bearsville day of Awakening

Bearsville Park, 291 Tinker Street, Woodstock
$35 admission fee (contact WOCA for discounted fee) To buy an advance admission, visit the Bearsville Theater online ticketing.

12:00 - 6:00 pm
SACRED CHANT/KIRTAN FESTIVAL
Come join musicians from across the Hudson Valley & beyond for this unique gathering of spirit in sound & dance & more than we may know.

12:00 noon
Mirabai Moon

Mirabai Moon - lead vocals, rhythm guitar & harmonium
Steve Gorn - bansuri & other woodwinds
Matt Tavisha Fass - lead guitar
Ganesh Michael Fiber - bass
Avinash - percussion
Angela Hassan - response vocals

1:00 pm
Arundhati

2:00 pm
Spirit Brothers

Ned Leavitt on lead vocals and harmonium
Joseph Jastrab on lead vocals and guitar
Steve Gorn on bansuri and other woodwinds
Avinash on percussion

3:00 - 6:00 pm
Krishna Das, Nina Rao, Arjun & more

Krishna Das on harmonium and lead vocals
Arjun on tabla (and other drums for his Rhythmic Sound Journey)
Nina Rao on harmonium and lead vocals
Noah Hoffeld on cello
Keli /Nina on Kartals and response vocals
Brad on bass
Steve Gorn on woodwinds

Connect in words to what is, approached from numerous perspectives, among us, in these talks & non-talks & discussions & more.

VOICES INCLUDE:

12:30 - 4:30 pm
AWAKENING TALKS, & ONE NON-TALK

12:30 pm - 1:30
An Introduction to Himalayan Wisdom

Meet a Siddha Master and be introduced to our divine nature…. Japanese-born Yogamata Keiko Aikawa, or Yogmata-Ji, is the first non-Indian Siddha Master, and only one of two Siddha Masters to appear in public to this day. A Siddha Master is a Himalayan saint who has achieved supreme Samadhi, a state of human consciousness that transcends physical and mental limitations to achieve oneness with the source of all creations.

1:45 - 3:00 pm
Robert Thurman on What is Awakening?

Buddhist sage Robert Thurman will answer this question among others as they may arise among us. Woodstock native, the founder of Tibet House/Menla and an American living treasure, Thurman was named by The New York Times the leading American expert on Tibetan Buddhism. He was awarded the prestigious Padma Shri Award in 2020 for his help in recovering India’s ancient Buddhist heritage.

3:15 - 4:30
Sharing Stillness with Elliott Landy

Elliott Landy transmits a spiritual energy, a vibration—often tangible—that enables one to quickly go into deep quiet. The energy can be transformative. You may experience spiritual awakening, deep relaxation, peace and wholeness. In SHARING STILLNESSⓇ sessions, there are no mantras, visualizations, physical postures or guided meditation techniques. THERE ARE NO WORDS. You sit quietly with your eyes closed and receive the energy.

MOVEMENT BY THE STREAM
12:00 - 6:00 pm

Integrate with the sounds of the creek & the music & the flow of guided meditation in movement that passes through us into and beyond understanding.

PRACTICES INCLUDE:

12:00 - 1:00 pm Shakti Yoga with Anika Fisher

1:00 - 2:00 pm Qi Gong with Corrine Mol  

2:00 - 3:00 pm Euphoria Yoga with Corrine Gervai

3:00 - 4:00 pm Kundalini Yoga with Owen Powell

4:00 - 5:00 pm Meditation Movement with Guy Beider

5:00 - 6:00 pm Qi Gong with Paul Blum

12:15 - 4:15
CHILDREN’S YOGA

Organized & enacted by community educators, including Emma Leigh & others, a dedicated & separate area of the Park we will host a semi-interlinked series of activities to delight, engage & inspire children through movements, story, art projects, group collaborations & more. (Children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.)

GATHERINGS INCLUDE:

12:15-1pm
All-Ages Yoga with Devin Schepetin, a Woodstock native and certified Sivananda Yoga Instructor.

1:15-2:00 pm
Movement for Union with Annika Fisher
Come play and move with the theme of yoga - learn different ways of breathing , how to be like other animals and what yoga is! Annika is a Hudson Valley native, raised on the simple pleasures of life: cold streams, flower gardens, cherry trees, and drum circles. Studying under Linda Winnick of Shakti Yoga Woodstock, Annika now teaches all over The Hudson Valley. She is a vivacious spirit imbued with an unfettered curiosity. Her keen fascination with anatomy and kinesiology allows for her classes to be intentional and educational, helping her students gain a deeper understanding of what may be happening within their bodies, and furthermore, their minds.”

2:00 - 2:30 pm
Giggles and Ganesha with Emma Leigh

2:30 - 3:15 pm
Krystal Kids with Nidhi Adhiya-Huba
Blend of Kriya yoga, crystal & energy healing with sound & play therapy. Nidhi has taught various forms of yoga for three decades. She has a Masters in Tibetan counseling, is a certified Family Consultant Constellation therapist, Life Coach, and Ayurvedic Nutritionist & Fengshui expert. Her motto is “Wellness is Wisdom,” and she is a guide and perpetual student in Self, Space & Soul Relations.

3:30 - 4:15 pm
Eco-Yoga for Kids with Mateo
Participants will be led through a vinyasa-based asana experience while engaging all of the senses to relate with the natural world around them. ecological concepts, such as respect for all of our earthly relatives, will be infused throughout the class. Mateo has been teaching yoga with young people for 13 years in New York City and throughout the Mid-Hudson valley. In addition, he leads guided hikes where he teaches participants about safe foraging practices while also highlighting the therapeutic benefits of forest bathing. To reach out for about future offerings: Maloney.j.matthew at gmail.com

12:00 - 6:00 pm
HEALING GARDEN MARKET

Tents, tables & sundry booths of people & groups at the forefront of wellness, healing & spiritual & community inquiry. You may find what you know you need here and what you didn’t know you need & everything in between to ease your way.

1:00 pm & 3:00 pm
AWAKENING WALKS

Bearsville Nature Trail Hosted by the Catskill Mountain Sangha Group, these two, half-hour Walking Meditations in the tradition of Buddhist Master Thich Nhat Hanh follow a path through the Bearsville Park’s woodland.

Shivastan Poetry Ashram, ($5 suggested donation) Join host and proprietor Shiv Mirabito in his garden with poets, mystics, sages and artists of every stripe from across the Hudson Valley & beyond for this garden party with readings & music & more. Shiv will curate a selection of “awakening books” for sale, amid good company: the Ashram contains a trove of literary and artistic treasures. Bring food and drink to share. Also, all attendees are invited to perform. Don’t miss this awakening oasis.

6:30 - 8:00 pm
Shivastan Awakening Books & Poetry Garden Party

7:00 - 8:15 PM
Kundalini Community Activation and Sound Bath with Hari Kaur & Jennifer Drue

Mothership Gallery ($10 suggested donation) Join us for a Kundalini activation and sound bath experience. Guiding our evening is esteemed Master Kundalini Teacher, Hari Kaur, and Jennifer Drue, leading a meditation that honors and activates group consciousness and healing, followed by a sound bath. We’ll conclude the evening with a rhythmic kriya featuring drum dancing—a transformative journey for mind, body, and spirit.

7:00 pm (suggested donations variously) From the bottom to the top of the town into the ether! People will be able to walk through Woodstock and always be in earshot of live music all along 212 from Alba’s to the Woodstock Outpost, emphasizing the town’s identity as a center of diverse musical creativity. There will be many musicians playing outdoors throughout Woodstock. A salute to the muse organized by Paul McMahon in gratitude to musicians and music everywhere. Tipping is smiled upon.

COMING FROM MUSICIANS IN 20 LOCATIONS, walking from west to east:

Juan Romo @ Alba’s
Holly Spaulding @ Narnia
Gus Mancini and Flash @ 120 Tinker St porch
Joe Bones @ around 114-117 Tinker St
Robin the hammer @ the Station  
A viola will be played by Kiki in the area of the Library 
Misty Mountain Ramblers @ Happylife
Gilles Malkine @ WAAM
Dancing Lady Laura and Falcon Krauss @ Jean Turmo
Shamsi @ Small Talk
Ben Vita @ Yum Yum  
Luke Hunsberger in front of Houst
Ever Peacock in front of Bread Alone
Barely Lace @ Shelter
Anna Womack w Bruce Balmer @ Lawn in front of Castaways 
The Lonesome Greeters @ Catskill Mountain Pizza
Marilyn Kirby two person trio @ Medo
The Sears family @ Bianca’s Frame Shop
Tbd @ Woodstock Outpost

Still waiting to hear from a few folks. If you would like to be included give me a shout at 845-443-5247 and leave a message. Thanks to Every Mother’s Son’s dentist Dr. Bruce Milner for help organizing.

6:00 - 9:00 pm
WOODSTOCK MUSIC WALK

8:00 pm (doors open at 7:00 pm)
CHOGYI LAMA & GUESTS LIVE

Tinker Street Cinema 132 Tinker Street ($20 door) Join Chogyi Lama and special for this Hendrix transmission.

BONUS: Jimi Hendrix in session at Tinker Street Cinema (including “Star-Spangled Banner”) on August 10, 1969, 55 years ago to the day!

8:15 pm
Solo Jazz Concert with Master Pianist Dave Frank

Mothership Gallery ($10-$20 suggested donation) After Hari & Jenn’s Sound Immersion, stick around for an exclusive solo concert by jazz master pianist Dave Frank. Renowned as one of the most sought-after solo pianists and jazz educators, Dave served as an Associate Professor of Piano at Berklee College of Music from 1987 to 2006 and authored Hal Leonard’s best-selling Joy of Improv book series. Don’t miss this chance to experience his exceptional talent! Dave will be offering private lessons on Sunday, 8/11. For more information, mail Dfrankjazz@aol.com. Check out Dave’s music.

8:30 - 9:30 pm
FORBIDDEN LOVERS

Mountainview Studio ($10 suggested donation) Forbidden Lovers are a duo fusing western pop productions and hip-hop rap by Infinity, and enchanting, versatile & diverse vocal expression of lead singer Halo.

10:00 pm - 1:00 am
Cacao Ceremony, Late Night Kirtan & Sound Medicine

ESKFF Nest ($25-minumum entrance) Join us for a late-night, last-hurrah gathering following all the day's Awakening festivities. We will celebrate with special guests carrying exceptional ancient and modern sound medicine.

10:00 pm - Cacao Ceremony with Marely
1:00 pm - Kirtan with Mirabai Moon
12:00 pm - Sound medicine journey with Joseph Schmidlin & Michael Jay

Space is limited, so buy your tickets in advance!
See here for more & to advance pay.

SUNDAY, August 11

5:45 am
Sunrise Chanting & Singing within Sacred Sound Chamber

Lenny’ Bee Happy Farm (395 Wittenberg Road, Bearsville) We will be chanting and drumming to welcome the sun as we mark the midsummer on our living Earth Mother. The sun rises at 5:30, but it takes the light a little while to get above the mountains so it doesn't shine into the chamber until a bit later. There are signs for Chamber parking. Please pull into the field and park where indicated. Head toward the back of the property, following the string of colored lights. Bring drums, rattles, flutes, whatever you like to make sound with. We will have some extra instruments as well.

10:30 – 11:30
Lingdro Dechen Rolmo

Mothership Gallery (Donation) A special Tibetan ritual dance for peace, Lingdro Dechen Rolmo addresses these challenging times. It was received in a meditative vision by Mipham Rinpoche, the great Tibetan scholar and mystic, with the intent to avert war, overcome negativity, bring balance to the world and the environment; and engender positive circumstances and prosperity. The director of the troupe, Lin Lerner, PhD, learned this sacred dance cycle in 1974-5 in a refugee camp in Odissa, India.

12:00 - 1;00 pm
SUNDAY SOUND JOURNEY with Emma Leigh

Sage Academy ($7 - $40 sliding scale) Join Emma Leigh for a transformative sound bath experience, where we create a sacred space for participants to meditate and release. Our SoundHealing journey incorporates a variety of instruments, including gongs, crystal & Himalayan bowls, crystal pyramids, and voice. We also integrate indigenous elements to evoke an ancestral space, fostering deep connection and tranquility.

Noon – 3 pm
AWAKENING SOLOS + “The Caterpillar’s Dream”

Andy Lee Field (donation) with limited food trucks. Woodstock Solos are a series of three-to-five minute, single-person enactments of words, performance and music. Performers include, to date, Mikhail Horowitz, Paul McMahon, Abbe Sue Graber, Sparrow, Bruce Milner, Michael Platsky, Linda Montano, Sara Hale Rude, Rev. Matthew Wright, Eva Bublick, Phillip Levine, Tad Wise, Marian Tortorella, Vladimir Nahitchevansky, Timothy Liu, Rennie Cantine, Khenpo Karma Tenkyong, Rev. Andrew McCarron, Evan Pritchard, Linda Montano, K Prevallet, Bruce Weber, Charles Stein, Nan Tepper, Robin “The Hammer” Ludwig, Mike Dubois, Sam Truitt, Sylvia Bullett, Laura Wood, Sue Wilens, Rev. Matthew Morse & more.

“The Caterpillar’s Dream” is an original musical work for children of all ages, created and performed by the Drama Club of the Northeast Center for Rehabilitation and Brain Injury and directed by Robert Garrido. “In the town park there is a tree and the neighbors that inhabit it: the caterpillar, the worm, the mockingbird and the owl have their own dreams to realize. Will there be anyone who can stop them?”

3:00 pm
Wish Vocation & Parade to the Green

Andy Lee Field (donation) Join us to read collectively our community wishes, thank what is for what was our Festival & pass what we have made onto the regularly-occurring Woodstock Community Drum Circle on the Woodstock Village Green.