FULL VOICE Playshop, 6 weeks of Embodied, Playful Vocal Exploration
FULL VOICE Playshop
Do you want to be a better communicator?
Do you care about others?
Would you like to expand your capacity for vocal expression?
Does the term playshop intrigue you?
Are you longing for creative spaces where you can show up just as you are and be loved, included, and know a deep sense of belonging?
Do you want safe(er) places to move with freedom in your body?
Is deeper listening something you long for in your life?
Do you have a story (or 12?) about your voice?
Are you curious about it could be to access YOUR Full Voice?
Where are your growth edges?
In a culture of busyness, distraction, machines, and disconnection, are you wanting to cultivate your capacity to drop in, connect more with yourself and those around you, and expand your view of what it means to be a living being on this planet with all other living beings?
Does the thought of speaking in public terrify you but you wish it didn't?
If any of these questions resonate, then this series is for you!! You're invited to come as you are with the voice that you have in this moment as we explore ways to deepen, expand, and broaden the edges of what is currently possible for your vocal expression. ChattaSings is a space where all of you is welcome - the tired, grumpy, elated, despairing, terrified, joy-filled, silly, playful, exhausted, rageful, bewildered, ecstatic, meh, and hungry parts of you are all welcome in this ever-widening circle. We will do our best to hold expansive space for every aspect of you that longs to be in community as we explore this most basic and universal of human instruments - our voices.
All are welcome, and together we will spread a bit more LOVE in this city and the world as we expand our capacity for deeper listening and more powerful communication. Six Wednesday evenings beginning Wednesday, October 7th from 6:00-7:30pm.
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WHEN & WHERE?
Wednesday Evenings at the Peacock Lounge downstairs at Pilgrim Congregational Church.
SIX WEDNESDAY EVENINGS
October 7th, 14th, 21st,
November 4th, 11th, and 8th
6:00-7:30pm each Wednesday evening
Pilgrim Congregational Church
300 Glenwood Drive
Chattanooga, TN 37404
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REGISTRATION is limited to 16 people
Please reserve your spot by registering in advance, preferably here on this website or via Venmo through a Friends and Family Payment at https://account.venmo.com/u/Naomi-Self. Please make a note that your payment is for the Full Voice Playshop. Thank You. Payment Plans are available on an individual basis. Reach out and let's chat if finances are a challenge.
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PARKING AND VENUE ENTRANCE
Pilgrim Congregational Church
300 Glenwood Drive, Chattanooga, TN 37404
Parking: There is ample parking in the paved lot off Glenwood Drive and space for 4 cars in a small lot off E. Third Street for those with accessibility needs.
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- THINGS TO KNOW We will be sitting in chairs AND be standing and moving about (you are empowered and supported to take care of your body if you have challenges with this).
- Please wear comfortable clothing and shoes that you can move around in.
- Please bring a water bottle.
- Please arrive 10-15 minutes early. We begin at the posted start time, and being present for the beginning is important.
- Eat lightly before we meet. Sounding requires space in your diaphragm and outward-facing expressive energy; digestion doesn't help with either. Small snacks to get you through are fine.
- Be fragrance/perfume-free.
- This is a closed container, not a drop-in group. Please make every effort to attend each session as our work and play will build on itself and our sense of community will deepen over these 6 weeks.
- This is an adult group.
- Session outline - much like a fitness class, we'll start with some orientation and warm ups, explore sounds and movement throughout each session, and end with a short integration experience.
- Phones/Recording - please make sure to silence your phone before our sessions start. I ask you to refrain from any recording (audio/video) during sessions. This is to allow us to be fully present.
- Connection over perfection - the goal is rich and meaningful experience as a group. This is a "call-out free space." I welcome you to ask for what you need and support others in doing the same.
- This is a fully in-person, indoor, mask-optional class. Consider it to be full exposure. We will be close to one another and breathing together deeply. Thank you in advance for keeping any spreadable germs to yourself if you suspect you are unwell.
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ABOUT THE FACILITATOR
Naomi Griffin Self (she/her) is an ever-evolving human, songleader, arts-lover, life coach, creative, and community leader, living and loving on the unceded land of the Cherokee people otherwise known as the Chattanooga, TN area on Turtle Island. For many years she regularly attended The Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, NY where she shared in the art of creating community through exploring songs, rhythms, chants, and harmonies in the "Singing in the Stream" workshop led by Maggie Wheeler and Emile Hassan Dyer. Naomi longs for a world in which we listen deeply to one another, celebrate diversity, and promote peace and justice as together we create thoughtful melodies and harmonies that make our lives and our world a more nurturing space for all.
With 20+ years of musical education including piano, flute, and choir participation, 10 years of Community Singing Circle experience, and hundreds of hours leading community song circles, Naomi is a member of the Ubuntu Choirs Network and a 2023 Community Choir Leadership Training Graduate. Naomi attended the Kodaly Summer Institute of Music at UTC in the summer of 2025. Naomi is also a certified Full Voice Trainer through Barbara McAfee's Full Voice Training course.
Naomi encourages you to be awed by the sound of your own music resonating with others as the rhythms, harmonies, melodies, dissonance, resolution, and magic moments of pause reflect the reality of the rich palette of your unique lived experience. Teaching songs to attend to a wide variety of topics and emotional realities, Naomi facilitates singing to awaken heart, voice, and body in these beautiful circles that she carefully curates and joyfully facilitates. Naomi invites you to open your heart, mind, mouth, and diaphragm to the possibilities you will create in your own life. Your voice deserves to be heard however it shows up.
To learn more about Naomi's work in the world, visit her website, ChattaSings. You are also invited to follow Chattanooga Singing Circle on Facebook or ChattaSings on Instagram.
Click here to sign up for Naomi's mailing list (the most reliable way to stay informed of upcoming events).
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INCLUSION & SOLIDARITY STATEMENT
As a cis-gendered, white, hetero, able-bodied, middle-aged American woman with adult-diagnosed ADHD and a history of trauma, I am committed to undoing systems of societal oppression and supporting liberation from the inside out, personally and collectively. I welcome folks of all identities and backgrounds to join my offerings and will do my best to cultivate an inclusive and supportive community space for those demographics that have been marginalized historically. I also acknowledge the limitations of my perspective and capacity due to the conditioned lens through which I see the world. I am committed to deepening my listening, my learning, and my unlearning and am open to doing so in community. May our collective learning serve toward the liberation of all beings.
Please help me spread the word and share this with anyone who may benefit from deepening into their voice and coming together in community for group harmony singing!
