Peter Phippen and Rahbi Crawford at The Center

 Last night I went to The Center to listen to Peter Phippen on his flutes and Rahbi Crawford on her singing bowls. It was something I would not have experienced had it not been for this blog and I was honored to be invited.

The Center is a big, beautiful stone house between Eau Claire and Altoona on highway 12. Built in 1937 it has been a home to two families. Opening in October 2013, today it is a wellness retreat: “The Center is dedicated to supporting people in wholeness of body, mind and spirit, regardless of religious orientation.”

The Center  is the brainchild of Anita and her husband Scott. Anita is from Minnesota and Scott from Colorado and they met in Seminary in Colorado. He was a United Methodist Pastor for 20 years, which meant he and his family moved every 4-6 years. They have children and wanted something more stable and wandered back to Anita's roots here in the Midwest. Anita first opened The Bridge Creek Cottage, a crafting house in Augusta, then she and her husband opened The Center. Though it's only been operating for 3 months, it appears to have found a following. The Center offers pottery classes and art therapy classes, Positive Living sessions, reiki, yoga, meditation, family therapy, life coaching, ayruveda, Jungian therapy, spiritual direction and a garden club.

Scott gave me a tour before the show and told me, “It's all about the spirit and all [religious] traditions yearn toward that spirit. At The Center we honor all those traditions.” He went on to say that the dictum of The United Methodist Church is “Open hearts, open minds, open doors,” and that their work at The Center is an extension of this.

When I arrived there were only a few people and while The Center still feels and looks like a (very nice and well-appointed) house, the atmosphere was hushed, almost reverent. I caught one man in a dark side-room checking his cell and found myself glad I'd left my phone in the car, thinking that electronics had no place here. As more people wandered in the mood lightened and I saw a lot of cell phones. No one was chastised or struck by lightening. Scott and Anita were warm and welcoming and appeared pleased with the upbeat, friendly bustle of their guests.

This concert--The Center's first--was held in their yoga and mediation area, a round-ish, cork-floored room overlooking Otter Creek. It was dark and snowy, but I'm willing to bet that in the day the view is breathtaking. Guests were encouraged to take their shoes off so as not to damage the cork. The room was light and open with walls of large windows. The lighting was comprehensive without being intrusive and the room had a clean, natural, spartan feel accented by their “teak tree.” The tree is a graceful piece of teak, standing about 3 feet high with naturally branching shelves on which are placed symbols from all the primary religious traditions. There was seating for 49 people with rows of chairs set out in a semi-circle and cushions with Mexican blankets in the front on the floor all facing the teak tree. In front of the tree were Rahbi Crawford's crystal bowls and Peter Phippen's flutes. Every seat was full. I nabbed a place on the floor, off to the side so I could see both the audience and the show.

Scott came to the front of the room and talked briefly about The Center and said that this was their first concert and he was pleased and excited to have Peter and Rahbi. He also said that a couple of people had called and said they would be late and he was trying to wait for them. He then introduced Rahbi and Peter who, gracious and smiling, entered the room and spoke briefly of their work.

Peter is a grammy nominated flautist, known mostly for his work with Native American flutes, though he has flutes from around the world. Rahbi is a “sound healer” and she spoke of how the vibrations from her singing bowls correspond with our chakras—our body's energy centers. She went on to explain that the sound and the vibrations allows relaxation conducive for reprogramming our body, helping it let go of stress. She said that our bodies have memories of past injuries and pain and that sound therapy heals by allowing our body to let those memories go. She talked of her delight in working with Peter because his flutes “play between the notes” enhancing the healing power of the sound.

The realization that this was not going to be like other shows started creeping up on me. I've heard Peter's music. It's wonderfully calm and ambient. It encourages your mind to float into the blue world of Inbetween. Peter and Rahbi hadn't even started and I knew I was going to be lying down. I took a quick look around the room. Some people had grabbed blankets off the shelves and were all relaxed in their chairs, but I was the only one on the floor.

I watched as Peter sat cross-legged on the floor, microphone close to his mouth. He appeared composed and serene, all in black, his long, dark hair loose around his shoulders and brushed back from his face. His flutes were laid out on either side of him in velvet-lined cases. They are basic--primitive--and some are over 200 hundred years old. The woods shine with a veneer of age and use. He later let me hold them and some are crooked and heavy, others are almost magically light. They are all treasured.

Rahbi stepped into the circle of her quartz-crystal singing bowls and knelt. The big bowls are made of opaque crystalline glass and range from a foot to two feet high, all with different diameters. There were 10 of them. There were also 3 smaller, clear-glassed bowls and a pyramid composed of 8 crystal rods, 4 on the base forming the shape of a square and 4 rods standing on each corner of the square, reaching up and meeting in a peak. She only used the pyramid once, but the sound was both delicate and powerful. For the most part Rahbi used the big bowls. After some casual and very natural discussion about what the first song might be, they began.

I sat cross-legged on the floor watching them. Peter was in his element. His face was unlined as he breathed music into his flute, eyes closed, feeling the sound. He told me later that this music represents who he really is, how he is at home with his wife and his grandchildren. While he is a “rock n roll god” (my words, not his) in his local, commercial musical endeavors this is who he's matured into. This music is what is important. He spoke excitedly about his musical union with Rahbi, about how she is willing to travel with him to spread their music. He spoke of his gratitude to The Center for allowing him to come and share his music.

Rahbi is probably in her mid-50s and has short, dark hair, and glasses. Tall, slender and strong she wore a long nehru-collared tunic and dark pants. She knelt amongst her bowls, gracefully turning on her knees or twisting her body to reach the next note. She worked the bowls with little, rubber-headed mallots, sometimes flicking her wrist for a gentle “gooong” other times running the mallot-heads around the rim to sustain the note.

This was not music I could observe; it was music I had to feel. I unfolded the blanket I was sitting on and lay down. Closing my eyes I let the music wash over my body. Tendrils of flute flickered through my brain in soft ululations and gentle whistle-whispers. Ripples of bowl lapped at my consciousness as I drifted in the space between notes. At the end of that first song there was nary a rustle as the sound of the last note hovered in the air, slowly dissipating. Peter opened his eyes, signaling it was over and the room burst into applause. I looked around and saw another woman lying on the floor and smiled. I felt sorry for the other 47 people bound to their chairs.

The music continued for 3 hours. Between songs I would lever up, grab my little black reporter's book and scribble a note: “The Dreaming Tree.” “Egyptian Kawala flute, late 19^th century.” “Animal sounds.” “A storm.” “Almost like playing 2 flutes at the same time.” “Haunting-happy.” “Nature epitomized.” “Skillful use of the microphone.” “Using his breath as music.” “Crown chakra.” “Heart chakra, Japanese flute, 1920s.” “Native American flute.” “Bindu chakra.” But as I left The Center I knew there was no way I would be able to piece my little words into a written description of the music from Saturday night. Because this isn't music you hear, it's music you experience.  It left me feeling energized and rejuvenated.

Peter's new CD, “Sacred Spaces” was just released and can be ordered here. Rahbi joins Peter on this recording. If this is your way, if this is your music, you have to get the CD and enter in to this music with them. You should also check out The Center. You just might find yourself.

To read more about Peter Phippen as Rock n Roll god, click here and here.