Amazing Grace - An Afternoon at the Vistar Foundation

What is the purpose of music? The answer to that question became clearer last week when I spent an afternoon in Stamford, CT at the Vistar Foundation. Thanks to my violinist/teacher friend, Judy Gerratt, a meeting was arranged with Vistar’s founders, Ron and Victoria Friedman, who graciously invited us into their home, their organization, and their creative process.

Ron and Victoria are pioneers in the emerging field of collective consciousness. They established Vistar in 1994 to tap the potential inherent to this new domain, and have attracted a diverse group of individuals, many of whom have been involved since its inception.

Collective consciousness refers to a process whereby people access together a higher and deeper state of awareness. In the words of Ron and Victoria, Vistar is “dedicated to the Power and Potential of Collective Consciousness...to the Field that arises when individuals gather in aligned intention...a Field which carries intelligence, wisdom, healing and creativity far beyond the sum of those present.” I had encountered Vistar’s work when I was part of the EnlightenNext organization in Lenox, MA—which is dedicated to a similar endeavor.

Vistar is unusual in that they use collective consciousness to create original theatrical and musical performances from the ground up. This aspect of their work particularly interested me since I’m a musician. They have developed a technique—the Vistar Method of Communication—which uses four simple rules to facilitate communication and the creative process in a group setting. “Every aspect of production from content, scripting, composing music, choreography, lighting, staging, set and costume design, employs the Vistar Method of Communication.”

Arriving in Stamford after a two hour drive from Stockbridge, MA, I found myself in an enchanting neighborhood of winding roads, field stone fences, rolling lawns, beautiful homes and woods. On a warm, sunny afternoon (which has been a rarity this summer!), Judy, Victoria and I sat together on the back terrace and talked for an hour or so before Ron and some of the Vistar members arrived. Interestingly, from the moment we began speaking we were drawn to ask each other about our personal journeys as individuals, more than about collective consciousness.

Victoria knows the work of EnlightenNext and so we spoke about our respective experiences. Having been immersed in the organization for ten years, I stepped outside of that community eighteen months ago. My life is now dedicated to the transformational power of music, in the context of which I'm teaching, lecturing and performing. Victoria spoke about two major influences in her life--spiritual teachers, Charles Ahart and Kenneth Mills (more about this extraordinary man later)--who impelled the founding of the Vistar Foundation.

Ron soon joined us as did members of Vistar—-Bettina, William, Lucinda, Bill, and others, including Victoria’s amazing 96-year-old mom. It became apparent that, although the focus of the foundation is a collective process of conscious creativity and discovery, the issue of individualism was on many people’s minds, including Ron and Victoria’s. And mine.

Amazing Grace - Part 2

The first two hours at Vistar flew by as we discussed a myriad of topics, any one of which I would have gladly spent an entire afternoon exploring with Ron, Victoria and the members of their organization. What continued to pique my interest most was the question of autonomy or self-actualization. I raised my concern that collective/group dynamics can sometimes inhibit the emergence of the individual. Victoria responded by saying that the collective experience should elicit one’s deepest sense of self. I replied that if the success of the collective is measured in those terms, then I totally agree!

After lunch, we moved to their spacious living room to embark on what Ron and Victoria had titled, “Tonal Presence: A Sound Gathering.” They had kindly created an afternoon “of music, poetry, song and enlightening discussions on sound, creative expression and Consciousness,” so that, together with Vistar performers, Judy and I could participate in their collective process.

What proceeded to take place fit their description perfectly. Ron began the session by reading a poem from Hafiz. Responses from the group were welcomed and suggestions for the next step—would it be a song, a recording, a performance?—were proposed. There was space and respect for the contribution of each individual, which made it easy to reply in an authentic way.

Next we listened to a choral piece by Kenneth Mill’s Star-Scape Singers. Discovering the work of Kenneth Mills that afternoon was a highlight for me. Mills was a concert pianist who gave up his performing career to become a spiritual teacher, composer and choir director. The result is the most extraordinary contemporary choral music I’ve encountered. He combines consonance (a sense of familiarity) and dissonance (the unfamiliar) in just the right measure. His original choral pieces and arrangements are scintillating and that is no exaggeration! Through music, he creates a bridge from the present (and past) to the future.




Taking my cue from the Star-Scape CD, which includes Mills’ choral rendition of “Amazing Grace,” I suggested I play that piece on piano for the group —it’s one of my favorite traditional melodies. It was a special experience to perform for people whose lives, like mine, were dedicated to the creative spirit. Their responses were wonderful.

(Click here to listen to the audio)

When I finished playing, in my mind I could hear the whole group singing "Amazing Grace" as I accompanied them. I suggested that as the next step in the event, but Ron said we should wait. I wasn’t quite sure why.


Judy then brought out her violin and we improvised together—something we’d not done before. She prefaced our duet with a disclaimer: she was far more comfortable playing classical music than improvising.





And yet, her tentativeness in that first attempt, resulted in music that was moving and authentic. The "Amazing Grace" performance grew from my solo to the duet with Judy, to a trio with one of the Vistar singers, and beyond as one by one the performers joined us. Afterward, we shared our thoughts on what happened. Some truly beautiful moments had arisen in the performance and the reflections that followed deepened the experience.


Later that evening, Ron Friedman described his response to my playing “Your music is not directive,” he said. “It’s poetry.” I asked him to explain the distinction. He said, “Mills’ music is directive. It goes outward. But, because of the silence and the space in your music, it calls upon the listener to respond from the deepest place and in so doing, it brings forth their true self. That's poetry. After you played," he continued, "we needed time to allow that response to emerge." It was thrilling to hear his response. "That’s why I suggested we wait," he said. "Your music went too deep for us to move on quickly.”

Ron was elucidating my sense of the power and purpose of music: to awaken the listener to his or her own authentic Self—-the seat of autonomy and beauty. As I considered the meaning of the song "Amazing Grace," the words were reframed:

Amazing Grace,
How sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me;
I once was lost, but now I’m found;
Was blind, but now I see.

Music is the sweet sound by which we now see--glimpsing the essence of who we are. And, yes we are saved--by the awakening of the inmost parts of ourselves.

That afternoon helped reveal the purpose of music and my own life. The visit to Vistar was wholly positive and evolutionary and for that I’m grateful. Victoria later wrote to me: "I know this is the beginning of great expansion with music, message, friendship and the essence of the Creative impulse." I, too, look forward to continuing this wonderful, new relationship!