04 Aug Vancouver Michaelmas 2015 Cambridge Music Conference
The Vancouver Michaelmas 2015 conference consolidates the ideas and ideals at the heart of Rudolf Steiner’s 1915 lecture “Preparing for the Sixth Epoch.” Since the inception of the Cambridge Music Conference, I feel this initiative has developed and embodies aspects of humanity Rudolf Steiner foreshadows in this lecture. Thus I felt it my responsibility to embrace these principles of our evolving humanity and bring them to light. Compassionate concern for the other, freedom of thought in the religious life and the universality of a spiritual worldview are aspects of our undiscovered humanity.
What we understand as altruistic acts of kindness, as well as concern for the other, Rudolf Steiner describes as a form of consciousness that will result in feeling another person’s suffering as though it were one’s own. Such empathy and heightened sensitivity of another’s pain could be described as “beyond compassion”. Rudolf Steiner describes moments when one will experience the suffering of the other so acutely that one cannot, but choose to act. Although compassion and altruism are invaluable for us in our time, they are simply a seed of what is to come. For the heart to sense suffering and compel us to act unquestioningly requires personal transformation.
Freedom of thought in the religious life means that each individual will only be able to trust his/her own subjective terms. What constitutes institutional religious belief will cease to be able to inform the inner nature of our spiritual life. The religious life will begin to be informed by truly personal experiences. Unique terms of inner truth will constitute the core of each individual’s religious life, which will also result in an understanding of the personal values created by each individual.
Just as we face the universality of a materialistic worldview in our time, as humanity evolves we shall begin to experience the universality of a spiritual worldview. For this to occur there will need to be a shift in consciousness. Novalis captures this change of perspective extremely well when he encourages us to go beyond the limitations of our interpretation of life today: “We are not simply human-beings having a spiritual experience, but spiritual beings having a human experience!”
Healing is the main objective of the Cambridge Music Conference. Whether music aspires to heal the individual or regenerate culture or renew social health, concern for the other and assuaging the suffering of others has been at the heart of the music conference since its inception. Furthermore, the philosophical premise of “dialogical thinking” at the heart of the Cambridge Music Conference has encouraged the involvement of people with different beliefs to come together for a common value, ie music as a healing art. The new music compositions inspired out of the Grail reveal each composers effort to remain faithful to his/her own personal religious terms. For example, Nigel Osborne explains the closest he could get to the Grail was/is in the form of the Divine Feminine, as a result “Transformations” (2007) emerged in the form of seven Goddesses: Isis, Layla, Lakshmi, Kore, Lilith, The Banshee, Sophia. Music with its potential to heal is the spiritual worldview of the Cambridge Music Conference. This collective initiative describes, transforms and spiritualizes life through music. In tune with life means at one with the spirit.
18-19 September 2015
Anthroposophy through the Arts – Calendar of the Soul with Ursula Zimmermann (eurythmist)
Rudolf Steiner’s Calendar of the Soul is to be the main focus of the workshop using eurythmy to deepen our understanding of the content of the meditational verses. Ursula Zimmermann has made the Calendar of the Soul a life long study. No knowledge of eurythmy is needed to attend this workshop! http://www.cambridgemusicconference.org/michaelmas/calendarofthesoul.html
25 -26 September 2015
Vancouver Michaelmas 2015 Cambridge Music Conference http://www.cambridgemusicconference.org/michaelmas.html
25 September 2015
Eurythmy Performance
Three new works will be premiered and performed by eurythmists Ursula Zimmermann and Klaus Suppan: “Resolution” by Janet Danielson, “The Light of Michaelmas” by Evgeny Shcherbakov, “Emily Carr’s Primeval Forest” by Jinny Shaw. The eurythmy performance includes works inspired by the Grail: “Fons Vitae Caritas” (2014) by Janet Danielson, “Transformations” (2007) by Nigel Osborne, “Gralsstimmung” (2010) by Howard Skempton, and “Fictional Epiphanies” (2008) by Kate Waring. http://www.cambridgemusicconference.org/michaelmas/michaelmas-eurythmy-performance.html
26 September 2015
Morning Lectures
Joan Sleigh: Spiritual Intelligence, Free Deeds of Will, the Sense Organ of the Heart
Philip Thatcher: The Michaelic Path and the Practice of Spirit-Beholding
Afternoon Workshops
Joan Sleigh, Philip Thatcher, Jinny Shaw and Klaus Suppan. http://www.cambridgemusicconference.org/michaelmas/vancouver-michaelmas-conference.html
27 September 2015
Signs of the Zodiac and Planetary Movements for Professional Eurythmists
Eurythmists Ursula Zimmermann and Klaus Suppan will be offering a one-day workshop for advanced and professional eurythmists!
Elizabeth Carmack
Artistic Director
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