Events Archive - Page 71 of 117 - Rancho La Puerta
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Pilates

Pilates Mat: Novice
Sunday – Friday, 9 AM
Am introductory progressive class is for those who have never experienced the benefits of this core strengthening, posture aligning methodology. Clear, concise and simplified for those who are a novice or need a brush-up of the fundamental basics.

 

Pilates Mat: Experienced
Sunday – Friday 10:15am (not progressive)
A moderately quicker-paced Pilates mat class for those individuals who regularly practice Pilates mat at home. Many classic exercises with a twist, occasional use of props, and moving at a slightly faster pace – this Pilates class will leave you invigorated, stretched, and strengthened!

 

 

John Garey is the creator of John Garey TV, an online, video on demand service. John earned his MS in Physical Education from New York University.
John is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through National Strength and Conditioning Association. He is a Nationally Certified Pilates Teacher, as well as, a certified Personal Trainer from the American Council on Exercise.
 
John has starred in over 1000 Fitness and Pilates videos. He is an International Pilates and Fitness Presenter and has contributed to and appeared in many international publications, including Pilates Style Magazine, Men’s Fitness, Shape, and GQ.


Nia

Helen Terry, M.Ed. R.S.A.
Exercise Physiologist, Master International Nia Trainer, Nia Trainer of the Year 2021, 2nd Degree Black Belt Nia Teacher, Authentic Movement Specialist, YogaFaith Instructor, Ageless Grace Educator.

Spend time around Helen and you will learn something, receive inspiration, and garner support for your dreams and desires (not to mention be highly entertained by her loving sense of humor and English-Texan accent, which many mistake for Australian.)

Helen has been helping people love their bodies and lives through Nia Technique since 1993. As one of the top lead international Nia Teacher trainers, Helen travels the world offering Nia classes, special events, trainings and retreats.

Helen has a special, and very effective, way of catering to the unique needs of each individual. She helps folks feel great while giving them the skills they need.

Recognized by Origins Magazine as a “Top Inspirer in Texas”, Helen is multi-talented with a magical formula. She combines experience and knowledge with determination and faith, to consciously create and bring ideas to life.

Helen founded NiaMoves Houston in 1996, a successful Nia fitness studio in Houston. Helen now co-owns Soma Ranch Retreat, Montgomery, Texas with her husband Joe.

Concerts

  • Duo Jazz Magic
  • Gems of Brazilian Music

Saxophonist/flutist/vocalist Kristen Strom and guitarist Scott Sorkin have been married and playing together for many years.  For these RLP concerts, they will present music from their unique and varied repertoire, including some new music written while staying home!

 

Kristen Strom has been a mainstay on the Bay Area music scene for nearly two decades, acclaimed for beautifully rendered melodies, exceptional tonality, and accomplished musicianship. Strom has played alongside many well-known artists, including Manhattan Transfer, Gladys Knight, Natalie Cole, Roberta Flack, Johnny Mathis, Jimmy Heath, Pamela Rose, and the touring company of Blues is a Woman. She also performs in a celebrated duo with husband/guitarist Scott Sorkin. In addition to her albums, Intention, Sojourn and Moving Day: The Music of John Shifflett, she has recorded more than 40 CDs with various jazz and pop artists. Her latest album, Moving Day, was listed as one of Best Jazz Albums of 2018 by The Mercury News and has gotten national and international airplay.

 

Scott Sorkin is a Bay Area guitarist, composer, producer, teacher and recording engineer who performs and records in styles ranging from jazz to Brazilian and Latin styles. His solo CD “Laika” was released in 2017. Performance credits include the Count Basie Orchestra, Mary Wilson (The Supremes), Nneenna Freelon, Paula West, Louie Bellson, Vince Giordano, Tammy Hall, Pamela Rose, Kristen Strom, touring shows “Dream Girls” and Disney’s “Newsies”, Symphony Silicon Valley, Great Performances, PBS Television and SFJAZZ. Sorkin has extensive recording credits as well as film scores (including composer credits). Scott co-leads the international jazz group “Crossing Borders”, featuring Kristen Strom, Jennifer Scott, and Rene Worst. He’s been a featured artist at many festivals.

History of Great American Piano Music from Scott Joplin and George Gershwin to Billy Joel

If you love piano music then come out for a fun and exciting program of solo piano music from the last 150 years to the present. George Lopez has wowed audiences throughout New England and the world with his entertaining and easy performance style, where he brings each piece to life with a dynamic narrative that totally draws in the listener. Some piano favorites will include the great American ragtime composer Scott Joplin, the iconic George Gershwin and the classical stylings of none other than William Martin “Billy” Joel. Not to be missed!

George Lopez, the Beckwith Artist-in-Residence at Bowdoin College, has been a dynamic performer and educator for over 25 years. He is known on several continents for his performance of the standard repertoire as well as being a champion of newly-written works. He recently premiered a piano concerto composed for him in Maine and is comfortable in styles of music ranging from jazz and ragtime to more contemporary improvisation. George Lopez is Artist in Residence at Bowdoin College on Maine where he performs regularly to capacity crowds and conducts the Bowdoin Symphony Orchestra.

Songwriter-Guitar and Singing Drum Concerts

Singing Drum
The Singing Drum (or HANG) is a soothing sound sculpture of rhythm and harmonics. Karl Anthony is on staff in a Healing Arts program for a children’s hospital and he plays this unique and beautiful instrument for recovering patients. You will experience how it expresses a deep and profound calming element which is guaranteed to revitalize and nurture your whole body and spirit.

The HANG is a relatively new instrument inspired by the steel pans of Trinidad; the first prototype crafted in Bern, Switzerland. Jennifer Brandt, our artist-in-residence, will start a painting project while we listen to the singing pan.

 

Karl Anthony is a songwriter and singer; and a facilitator and advocate for the healing potential with music.  Karl leads international service trips to Thailand and has received several Gandhi/King Season for Nonviolence Peace Hero awards for his humanitarian efforts and innovative music performances. He creates anthems of hope and believes music can be a catalyst for positive change.  When Karl is not on the road touring, his music is influenced by his unique experiences working with the Healing Arts Department at Children’s Hospital in San Diego. Karl’s music and his career cross countless boundaries and is truly an international language of service and joy. On the Web:  karlanthony.com

Concert Under the Stars!

The Great American Piano Music from Scott Joplin and George Gershwin to Billy Joel

Come out for a fun and exciting program of solo piano music from the last 150 years to the present. George Lopez has wowed audiences throughout New England and the world with his entertaining and easy performance style, where he brings each piece to life with a dynamic narrative that totally draws in the listener. Some piano favorites will include the great American ragtime composer Scott Joplin, the iconic George Gershwin and the classical stylings of none other than William Martin “Billy” Joel. Not to be missed!

Workshops!
Class for Children 7-9 years old
Rhythm Machine: Find out how rhythm creates and shapes our world then have fun building a “Rhythm Machine” with the whole class and everyone doing a different sound using their bodies!

Class for Tweens 10-12 years old
Music in Motion:  Experience how music moves our bodies and imitates everything from dance to sports. Have fun making your own music-inspired human sculpture.

Performance Class for Teens 13-17 years old
The Art of the Stage: This class will focus on improving your overall presentation, how to come on stage and stay focused, your beliefs about the audience and what their thinking (or NOT thinking) and understanding how to channel your nerves to get into the zone. No experience needed and a GREAT confidence builder!

 

George Lopez, the Beckwith Artist-in-Residence at Bowdoin College, has been a dynamic performer and educator for over 25 years. He is known on several continents for his performance of the standard repertoire as well as being a champion of newly-written works. He recently premiered a piano concerto composed for him in Maine and is comfortable in styles of music ranging from jazz and ragtime to more contemporary improvisation. George Lopez is Artist in Residence at Bowdoin College on Maine where he performs regularly to capacity crowds and conducts the Bowdoin Symphony Orchestra.

Train to Maintain Your Brain

Who wants to retain or possibly improve memory, cognitive function, processing speed, balance, gait, and posture? Who doesn’t?! This cutting edge, research-based, exercise program offers moves that stimulate your motor, cognitive, and sensory domains so that you develop:

  • better balance
  • more coordination
  • prodded memory
  • enhanced posture
  • faster gait
  • better functional movement capability

The unique aspect of this program is its INTEGRATED approach to posture, balance, fall prevention, walking speed, strength, and cognition. People trip when distracted; lose cognitive ability when stuck in routines; increase fall risk when posture degrades. Even stride speed relates to longevity. You can positively affect all these conditions with targeted, unique — dare I even say– fun exercises based on the latest science and applied to your functional life.

If you have brain health concerns or simply want to play, laugh, and learn tasks that stimulate your brain and body all-in-one, come join me. Each session offers stand-alone activities so you can attend any day or all and still walk away with moves to keep your brain and body functioning better and longer.

 

Kymberly Williams-Evans PhD (ABD) has taught fitness to more than 40,000 participants on 4 continents in 4 languages for almost 4 decades. Her teaching career spans land, sea, and airwaves and started in the first aerobics studio in Europe.

Former faculty at University of California Santa Barbara in both the Dept of Exercise and Sports Studies and English, she specializes in active older adult and baby boomer group exercise. Kymberly holds both group instruction and Senior Specialty certification through the American Council on Exercise (ACE), earned the Functional Aging Specialist certification, and is a charter member of the 2020-21 AgeWell Collective.

Called an “edu-tainer,” based on rumors that she brings humor to her classes, Kymberly is also a prolific fitness writer, three-time finalist as Fitness Director of the Year for an international professional association (IDEA), and three-time National Aerobic Championship Regional Gold Medalist. When not teaching classes in her hometown of Santa Barbara, CA you can find her at Rancho la Puerta, where she has been guest instructing since 1985.

Fit + Free 2021

Fit + Free brings together six gentle, vibrant movement lessons designed to free your neck, shoulders, eyes, hips, and spine.

Fit + Free will offer you a way to relax your traps, upper back and neck; release your hips and low back; lengthen tight hamstrings so you can rock your spin class or hike up Mt. Kuchama; free your shoulders and ace your down dog in yoga, and quiet your nervous system for a sweet night’s sleep.

One of the most essential things you can do for yourself at 35, 45, 55 and beyond is maintaining (and expanding) all the freedom of movement you have. It’s freedom of movement that allows you to enjoy all your favorite fitness activities without injury: yoga, pilates, tennis, walking, hiking, dancing, and active time with family and friends.

Fit + Free is based on the principles of the Feldenkrais movement method. You’ll love this proactive, joyful approach to elegant movement and feeling wonderful in your skin. Fit + Free will be one of the very best ways to bring the Ranch home with you.

 

Carolyn Garfinkel, Guild Certified Feldenkrais Practitioner® with an active practice, knows that fluid movement and a long lean carriage keep you feeling young and fit. She is based in Studio City, California. For the past twenty years, Carolyn has enjoyed bringing the benefits of Feldenkrais to a wider audience, including Rancho La Puerta Spa, the Multiple Sclerosis Society, the Disney Cancer Center at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Burbank, CA and the Los Angeles Cedar Sinai Hospital’s Feldenkrais Expo. She’s a devoted student of yoga and a certified teacher of the Sounder Sleep System®.

Carolyn’s grateful for the year-round opportunities for movement and getting outdoors that Southern California offers, and loves attending live performance, especially opera, symphony, and dance.

Concert

Performance with Karen Follingstad, piano; Martha Aarons, flute, and Lev Polyakin, violin
Join us in the beautiful Oaktree Pavilion for a repertoire that covers several centuries chronologically, composers from various countries, and encompasses a wide variety of styles—from contemplative to charming to downright virtuosic!

 

Karen Follingstad has been Professor of Piano at San Diego State University since 1984. She has also taught at Kent State University, the University of Akron, and was artist faculty at the Kent-Blossom Music Festival from 1992-94, where she coached chamber music and performed with principal members of the Cleveland Orchestra. As a solo recitalist, Dr. Follingstad has performed extensively throughout Europe and North America and has recorded for the Hessische Rundfunk and the Norwegian Radio. She has appeared as soloist with the Minnesota Orchestra, the Blossom Festival Orchestra, the San Diego Chamber Orchestra, and the Bear Valley Music Festival Orchestra, among others. An experienced collaborative pianist, Dr. Follingstad, in partnership with clarinetist Marian Liebowitz, was 1997 winner of the United States Information Agency/Kennedy Center Artistic Ambassador Competition, which resulted in a month-long tour of Central and South America. The Duo was also chosen to represent the U.S. at El Salvador’s Third Annual Peace Festival in 1998. She has also performed recitals with cellists Yo Yo Ma and Carter Brey, violinists Andrés Cárdenes, William Preucil, Cho-Laing Lin, Eugene Fodor, and others. Ms. Follingstad is a sought-after chamber musician, appearing with the Thouvenel String Quartet, the Arioso Wind Quintet, the Ensemble of Santa Fe, the Miami String Quartet, and the Pacifica String Quartet. Karen has also participated in numerous prestigious music festivals including the Berkshire Festival at Tanglewood, the La Jolla Chamber Music Society’s SummerFest, the Mainly Mozart Festival, and summer festivals in Bear Valley and Marin, California; Sedona, Arizona, and Steamboat Springs, Colorado.

 

Martha Aarons’ professional career began with her appointment as principal flute of the North Carolina Symphony. Subsequently she played with the Cleveland Orchestra for 25 years.  After becoming a freelancer she performed often with the Philadelphia Orchestra. During this time she appeared as guest principal flute with the Metropolitan Opera, Minnesota Orchestra, Milwaukee Symphony, San Diego Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, and Mostly Mozart Festival. Ms. Aarons served as Artist Faculty with the Aspen Music Festival for 19 years. Her teaching credits include the Cleveland Institute of Music, Duke University, University of North Carolina/Chapel Hill, Oberlin College, Skidmore College, Shanghai Conservatory and Eastman School of Music. She has been soloist with the Cleveland Orchestra, North Carolina Symphony, Ohio Chamber Orchestra, and with the Aspen Festival Chamber and Festival orchestras. Her first solo CD, The History of the Tango, is recorded on the Azica label and additionally features pianist Frances Renzi and Grammy-winning guitarist Jason Vieaux.  Her newest release is the CD Last Silence with violinist Lev Polyakin and pianist Frances Renzi.

Martha is also an avid runner and will be participating in the 125th Boston Marathon this October.

Lev Polyakin was appointed co-concertmaster of the Moscow Chamber Orchestra at age 21. In that position he was regularly featured as soloist. In the U.S. he served as assistant concertmaster of the Cleveland Orchestra, as well as concertmaster of the American Academy of Conducting in Aspen Music Festival. Lev has won several prizes in international violin competitions, including the Beethoven Prize in Carl Flesch in London, and Gold Medal and Special Prize in Brescia, Italy. In addition to solo performances with the Moscow Chamber Orchestra, he has appeared as soloist with the London Mozart Players, Royal Philharmonic, and Cleveland Orchestra. Recording credits include Melodia, BBC, National Public Radio, and Decca. He is prominently featured on an album entitled Cafe Music comprising chamber music by Paul Schoenfield, which was nominated for a Grammy.  Lev has a special interest in jazz and has recorded three CDs, entitled Russian Blue, The Other Side of the Road, and Christmas Kaleidoscope.  He is also featured in the recent release by Azica Records entitled Last Silence, with flutist Martha Aarons and pianist Frances Renzi.

Our Night Sky

Explore Rancho La Puerta’s Night Sky
The dark skies at the Ranch provide a fabulous opportunity for seeing the wonders of winter such as the Milky Way, Andromeda Galaxy, Great Nebula in Orion, and more! Participate in another magical part of the Ranch experience. You will never look at the night sky the same way again.

Star Gazing Evenings
Observe with the naked eye and binoculars.

 

Scott MarroneJohn Scott Marrone has over 30 years-experience teaching in the New York area. In addition to Astronomy, Scott teaches Forensics, Environmental Studies and Oceanography. He has been recognized by Ciba-Geigy Corporation for work in promoting science literacy and received the Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award in 2007 from Manhattan College. In February 1998, Scott was invited by the Aruban Government to substitute for astronomer Jay Pasachoff to lead the observing of the total solar eclipse.  Most recently, Scott led the public observing session on Mauna Kea and in 2017 traveled to Wyoming with a group to view the total solar eclipse.

Yam Beat Live at Bazar del Sol!

Yam Beat is a duet from the bicultural city of Tijuana bordering with San Diego.  Yamel Kuri, soprano, and Erich Otero, pianist, have a culturally varied repertoire.  For this occasion they have prepared a set of beloved songs from American Jazz and other classics in the bossanova style with a Baja sound.

Health and Beauty

How to Use Essential Oils in Self-Care Rituals for Beauty, Balance and Well-Being
Learn the therapeutic properties of key essential oils, whose plants are grown on the Ranch, and the best self-care rituals you can use at home for stress relief, deep sleep, restoring energy, balance and well-being.

How to Maintain Your Skin’s Radiance and Vibrancy at Any Age
What herbs and essential oils can be used to heal, nourish and restore the skin? Learn simple yet effective regimens for your own skin care needs and overall vital well-being.

 

Tara Grodjesk, winner of American Spa magazine’s Women in Wellness Visionary Award, president of Tara Spa Therapy, Inc., and emeritus founder of Green Spa Network, has devoted over 35 years of experience in Holistic Health and Wellness to bring therapeutic efficacy to spa treatments and products. Tara has been a consultant to world-class spas and is a master developer of high quality, holistic personal-care products. She is the expert behind the Rancho La Puerta Core Essentials line.  Ms. Grodjesk has a degree in Psychology with Honors from the Univ. of Michigan. She is a Certified Massage Therapist, Holistic Health Educator, Ayurvedic Practitioner and Aroma Therapist.  Her vision is to harness nature’s inspiration to create environments and experiences that support healing and which nourish the Divine within.

Music is Medicine for the Body, Heart and Soul

Harnessing the Regenerative Power of Music for Health and Wellness

Music is an incredibly powerful phenomenon that touches us in profound ways. For more and more people, music transcends being simply a form of entertainment to become much more: a resource for healing and a connection to the things that matter most during the critical passages in our lives. This way of harnessing the “universal language of emotion” can enhance and uplift our lives (and environments) in meaningful and healing ways. It can awaken joy, reduce stress, and create more humane ecosystems of compassion and empathy. These multi-sensory experiences can rebalance our hearts and minds, nourish our souls, and strengthen our capacity to be of service to others. When these music and sound experiences are created in the name of the love of life, you can harness these vibrationally intelligent modalities to co-create a world of unity where everyone wins.

 

Gary Malkin is a multiple Emmy award-winning composer, public speaker & arts and health expert who inspires the world to embrace music as a catalyst for greater emotional intelligence, heart-centered mindfulness and cross-cultural community building through his life-enhancing company, WisdomoftheWorld.com.  His score for Thrive, the most watched documentary in history, received a Hollywood Music in Media award in 2013. His globally acclaimed palliative resource, Graceful Passages, co-created with award-winning filmmaker Michael Stillwater, is considered the most celebrated work of its kind, having supported over a million people worldwide to find acceptance for the end of life process.  Gary has presented at UCSF Medical Center, Stanford Health, Houston Methodist, Google, Harvard’s Conference on Spirituality and Health, Scripps Clinic, among many others. After over 30 years of creating music for mainstream film and television, his work redefines music’s capacity to awaken compassion wellness into the fabric of our lives with more gratitude and Grace.

Chess Games

Social Chess Games – All ages (under 9 with parent), all levels welcome
Join chess coach Alex Freuman and your fellow Ranch chess enthusiasts to play some social chess games in a fun, low key environment.

Introduction to the Game of Chess – All ages (under 9 with parent)
This class is intended for complete beginners, as well as those with entry-level knowledge of the basic rules. In addition to learning the movement of the pieces and rules of the game, participants will be given a roadmap for continued enjoyment of chess. Included will be book recommendations, online resources, and practical tips on chess improvement.

Great Chess Games Played by the Masters – All ages
Join chess coach Alex Freuman for a glimpse into the artistry of some of the greatest chess masters of all time. We will review 2-3 classic games and analyze the moves that resulted in each masterpiece. Participants will develop a deeper appreciation and understanding of chess strategy and tactics. Intended for participants familiar with the rules of chess.

 

Alex Freuman is a high school STEM teacher who holds a BA in mathematics from Oberlin College and an MS in mathematics education from Hunter College in New York City.   A long time chess and puzzle enthusiast, Alex coaches the chess team at Nyack Highschool (Nyack, NY), is faculty advisor for the Nyack Highschool Puzzle Club, is the founder and President of the Rockland County Chess Club, and is a certified US Chess Tournament Director.  His current United States Chess Federation (UCSF) rating is 1900, and he hopes to break 2000 before his children beat him to it. Alex is passionate about creating community and fostering multi-generational connections through the joy of chess.

Yarn Painting and Prayer Arrows

Yarn Painting is a celebrated folk art of Mexico that is admired and collected around the world.  Our very own Tim Hinchliff is probably one of the few non Huichol art masters of this beautiful artistic expression.

The Prayer Arrow is something that you create with intention.  You can either write a goal for yourself or a prayer for someone you know, or it can even be a thank you put out into the universe.

 

Timothy HinchliffA great, great, grand-nephew of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Timothy Hinchliff was born an artist and poet with one foot in the wilds of nature and one foot in the garden. He began to follow a path that would train him to become a recognized Shaman-Artist in the Huichol yarn painting tradition. Timothy has guided guests at the Ranch for more than thirty years in creating their Prayer Arrows and Yarn Paintings on a weekly basis, enchanting each with magical stories of pathways that lead one to the doorway of personal discovery. All ages will experience the joy-filled world of imagination while creating their own yarn paintings.

Living a Life of Peace

Using the Peace Pledge as a guide, we will explore how to live a life full of love, kindness, purpose and joy. Each workshop will dive into a line of the Peace Pledge offering dynamic, fun and interactive activities that will warm hearts and enliven souls.

The Peace Pledge

I pledge to use my words to speak in a kind way.
I pledge to help others as I go throughout my day.
I pledge to care for our earth with my healing heart and hands.
I pledge to respect people in each and every land.
I pledge to join together as we unite the big and small.
I pledge to do my part to create PEACE for one and all.

 

Power Magnets
Create an affirmation magnet to take home.

The Great Kindness Challenge 
Complete as many acts of kindness as possible!

Kindness Unites Paperchain
Design “Love Links” for a commUNITY paperchain.

Singing Affirmations
An uplifting guided meditation & personalized affirmation sound bath.

 

Jill McManigal and Hana Craft are a mother-daughter duo who founded Kids for Peace, a global nonprofit that empowers youth to create peace through hands-on service, global friendships and thoughtful acts of kindness. What started as a “club” in their backyard has grown into a worldwide movement with 17 million youth participating in 115 countries. Jill is the Executive Director of Kids for Peace and Hana, a recent USC graduate, is a TikTok spiritual influencer and singer-songwriter. Always leading with love, they’ve traveled from California to Kenya, Pakistan to Puerto Rico, empowering youth to create a better world for all. www.kidsforpeaceglobal.org

Rhythmic Sounds

The Beatles: Listen and Talk with Steven Schick
In 1963 the Beatles were a promising band just beginning to make a name for themselves.

By 1970 they had changed the face of popular music forever. Their metamorphosis is a story of musical genius and the uneasy dreams of an entire generation. Fifty years after “Please Please Me,” they still please us. Let’s listen together and talk about why.

Rhythmic Sounds
The rhythms of nature.  The beating of your heart, the rise and fall of the surf, the promise of a child drawing her first breath.  The world is full of meaningful, beautiful…and rhythmic…sounds.   Join Steven Schick—percussionist, conductor and author—as he explores the world of percussion rhythms and mindful listening.  Don’t worry!  This is still your vacation.  The performance will be gentle, evocative and will draw you into a world of pulses, sonic textures and musical gestures.  If you think you’ve heard everything there is to hear on a concert stage, then come take a listen to the percussionist that Alex Ross of “the New Yorker” called, “one of our supreme living virtuosos, not just of percussion, but of any instrument.” It will music for both the ears and the heart.

Percussionist, conductor, and author Steven Schick, hailed by Alex Ross in the New Yorker as, “one of our supreme living virtuosos, not just of percussion but of any instrument,” has championed contemporary percussion music by commissioning or premiering more than one hundred-fifty new works. Steven Schick is artistic director of the La Jolla Symphony and Chorus and the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players. As a conductor, he has appeared with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Milwaukee Symphony, Ensemble Modern, the International Contemporary Ensemble, and the Asko/Schönberg Ensemble.   He is the curator of, and was most recently conductor and percussion soloist in, “It’s About Time,” a festival of the San Diego Symphony held in January of 2018. Schick’s publications include a book, The Percussionist’s Art: Same Bed, Different Dreams, and many articles. He has released numerous recordings including the 2010 “Percussion Works of Iannis Xenakis,” and its companion, “The Complete Early Percussion Works of Karlheinz Stockhausen” in 2014.  He received the “Diapason d’Or” as conductor (Xenakis Ensemble Music with ICE) and the Deutscheschallplattenkritikpreis, as percussionist (Stockhausen), each for the best new music release of 2015.  He was inducted into the Percussive Arts Society Hall of Fame in 2014.  Steven Schick is Distinguished Professor of Music and holds the Reed Family Presidential Chair at the University of California, San Diego. He was music director of the 2015 Ojai Festival, and in 2017, the co-artistic director, with Claire Chase, of the Summer Music Program at the Banff Centre.   In 2018 Schick became the Artistic Director of the Breckenridge Music Festival.

Amp up your interpersonal effectiveness!

How to communicate with just about anybody, come across with tact and diplomacy, wow ‘em with your magnetism and charisma, and put your best foot forward in any situation

When you think about it, we’re constantly in charge of “marketing” ourselves. Whether it’s to friends, colleagues, clients, customers, family members, or strangers in the grocery store, it’s up to us to present ourselves as the people we think we are—or perhaps, as the people we aspire to be.

So how do you do it? Through crystal-clear communication channels. With body language that matches your words. By employing techniques that seek to clarify understanding among individuals. And—the best part—all of these skills are 100% acquirable.

In this series of classes, we’ll examine ways in which you can put your point across with tact and accuracy, make a positive first impression, become a better listener (yes, it’s a learned skill!), give specific feedback (even when it’s a difficult message), and, when problems arise, handle and diffuse negative emotions in yourself and others.

Denise’s classes are always positive, informative, and fun!

It all starts with YOU—and how you come across to others
How do you look and sound? We’ll examine the seven essential communication components that create your unique “you-ness,” and you’ll learn some easy (and instant) tweaks to project yourself with accuracy and self-assurance.

Personal response styles: Passive, aggressive and assertive
Are you passive, aggressive or assertive—or perhaps all three? We’ll take a look at the response styles of ourselves and others, discuss how your style affects your life (and your relationships), and how you can make simple changes that create big results!

Speaking and Listening: The “give and take” of successful communication
Speaking and listening—they go together! What’s more, they’re both equally necessary for true communication to take place. We’ll discuss how to accurately share your thoughts and feelings, avoid distractions, stay focused, pay attention, and honor others through your mindful presence.

When relationship difficulties arise: Assertive problem solving
Conflicts, quarrels, disputes, misunderstandings…try as we might, they sometimes happen. We’ll discuss how to untangle miscommunications, disarm anger, quell hurt feelings, and we’ll explore some tips for how to create peace and understanding in your personal and professional relationships.

 

Denise M. Dudley is a professional trainer and keynote speaker, author, business consultant, and founder of SkillPath Seminars, the largest public training company in the world, which provides 18,000 seminars per year, and has trained over 12.5 million people in the US, Canada, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand and the UK. Denise holds a Ph.D. in behavioral psychology, a hospital administrator’s license, a preceptor for administrators-in-training license, and is licensed to provide training to medical professionals in the United States and Canada. She’s also a certified AIDS educator, a licensed field therapist for individuals with agoraphobia, and a regularly featured speaker on the campuses of many universities across the US, and the author of Simon and Schuster’s best-selling audio series, Making Relationships Last.  Denise speaks all over the world on a variety of topics, including management and supervision skills, leadership, assertiveness, communication, personal relationships, interviewing skills, and career readiness.  Denise’s latest book, Work it! Get in, Get noticed, Get promoted, which she wrote for graduating high school and college students, is currently available on Amazon.com, and is receiving all 5-star customer reviews. http://denisemdudley.com/

 

 

 

 

 

 

Amp up your interpersonal effectiveness!

How to communicate with just about anybody, come across with tact and diplomacy, wow ‘em with your magnetism and charisma, and put your best foot forward in any situation

When you think about it, we’re constantly in charge of “marketing” ourselves. Whether it’s to friends, colleagues, clients, customers, family members, or strangers in the grocery store, it’s up to us to present ourselves as the people we think we are—or perhaps, as the people we aspire to be.

So how do you do it? Through crystal-clear communication channels. With body language that matches your words. By employing techniques that seek to clarify understanding among individuals. And—the best part—all of these skills are 100% acquirable.

In this series of classes, we’ll examine ways in which you can put your point across with tact and accuracy, make a positive first impression, become a better listener (yes, it’s a learned skill!), give specific feedback (even when it’s a difficult message), and, when problems arise, handle and diffuse negative emotions in yourself and others.

Denise’s classes are always positive, informative, and fun!

It all starts with YOU—and how you come across to others
How do you look and sound? We’ll examine the seven essential communication components that create your unique “you-ness,” and you’ll learn some easy (and instant) tweaks to project yourself with accuracy and self-assurance.

Personal response styles: Passive, aggressive and assertive
Are you passive, aggressive or assertive—or perhaps all three? We’ll take a look at the response styles of ourselves and others, discuss how your style affects your life (and your relationships), and how you can make simple changes that create big results!

Speaking and Listening: The “give and take” of successful communication
Speaking and listening—they go together! What’s more, they’re both equally necessary for true communication to take place. We’ll discuss how to accurately share your thoughts and feelings, avoid distractions, stay focused, pay attention, and honor others through your mindful presence.

When relationship difficulties arise: Assertive problem solving
Conflicts, quarrels, disputes, misunderstandings…try as we might, they sometimes happen. We’ll discuss how to untangle miscommunications, disarm anger, quell hurt feelings, and we’ll explore some tips for how to create peace and understanding in your personal and professional relationships.

 

Denise M. Dudley is a professional trainer and keynote speaker, author, business consultant, and founder of SkillPath Seminars, the largest public training company in the world, which provides 18,000 seminars per year, and has trained over 12.5 million people in the US, Canada, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand and the UK. Denise holds a Ph.D. in behavioral psychology, a hospital administrator’s license, a preceptor for administrators-in-training license, and is licensed to provide training to medical professionals in the United States and Canada. She’s also a certified AIDS educator, a licensed field therapist for individuals with agoraphobia, and a regularly featured speaker on the campuses of many universities across the US, and the author of Simon and Schuster’s best-selling audio series, Making Relationships Last.  Denise speaks all over the world on a variety of topics, including management and supervision skills, leadership, assertiveness, communication, personal relationships, interviewing skills, and career readiness.  Denise’s latest book, Work it! Get in, Get noticed, Get promoted, which she wrote for graduating high school and college students, is currently available on Amazon.com, and is receiving all 5-star customer reviews. http://denisemdudley.com/

 

 

 

 

 

 

Matters That Matter®: Standing At The Threshold & Finding Our Way Forward

As this year draws to a close and a new one is near at hand, we stand at a threshold. That space that stands between what has been and what could be, and is always an invitation to change, growth, and transformation. To end this year well and prepare to begin a new one, join Molly Davis & Kristine Patterson for an inspiring and engaging week of reflection, exploration, and equipping ourselves for the trail ahead.

The Ranch offers that kind of rare spaciousness that makes room for slow wanderings, morning hikes, and contemplative reflection, leaving guests refreshed, renewed, and ready to step out with more clarity, courage, and grace. Every Matters That Matter® session is designed with the intent of serving and enhancing that renewal process.

Threshold Moments
There are such things as “threshold moments”. Those times when we are invited to step over fear and uncertainty, cross over the border of the familiar and the comfortable, and venture into the unknown. Threshold moments call upon our courage, and, they are game-changers. When we recognize them and accept the invitation being offered, our lives become increasingly authentic and wholehearted. Come listen, reflect, and consider your own threshold moments, past, present, and future.

Workshop #1
Standing At The Threshold
Taking the next right step begins with a right understanding of where we stand now. Finding our way forward means connecting who we are with how we live. Our lives don’t happen by accident. We participate in creating them every day and one step at a time. What better place than the Ranch to consider your next right steps? Join Molly & Kristine as they create a safe space for you to engage in courageous thinking and thoughtful action planning as you find your way forward.

Workshop #2
Discernment: The Practice of Choosing Wisely
Finding our way forward well means learning to choose wisely. Regardless of circumstances or life chapter, we are inundated with responsibilities, obligations, opportunities, and possibilities. Where to spend our time, energy, money, skills, and gifts? Where, how and to whom do we offer what we have to give? This workshop will introduce you to a practical discernment framework to help you choose wisely.

Workshop #3
The 3×5 Card
Accepting the invitation to step over any threshold usually requires that we speak up in new ways, and in situations that test our ability to hold onto ourselves, say what we mean, and mean what we say. Come discover how a small 3×5 card can become a mighty tool to help you find your way forward.

 

Kristine and Molly co-authored the internationally published  Letters To Our Daughters which was highlighted on the Oprah Show. They are founders of Matters That Matter®, a partnership providing keynotes, retreats, and workshops designed to inspire people to live in alignment with what matters most. Their message has been heard at national conventions, annual fundraisers, and spirituality and wellness retreats. They have been best friends for 45 years.

 

MOLLY DAVIS is a speaker, writer, coach, and author of the award winning BLUSH: Women & Wine. Not a book about never drinking wine again (phew!), but why she often used wine as a classy looking way to cope with stress, dull pain and avoid discomfort, and why others might do the same. The founder of Trailhead Coaching & Consulting, she helps people courageously step more fully into their own lives by connecting who they are with how they live.

 

KRISTINE Patterson is a potter, author, maker, and storyteller. A few years ago she launched Beanpole Pottery in a quiet studio tucked into her own backyard. It started as a hobby and way to process life, became a full-time business, and now she ships her gorgeous custom work all over the world. Each piece has a soul that, like ours, is perfect in its imperfection.

Cooking Classes

Deborah Schneider is Executive Chef & Partner of the award-winning SOL Mexican Cocina and Solita Tacos & Margaritas restaurants, currently with six locations in California, Arizona, and Colorado, which focus on the best in contemporary and traditional Mexican cuisine. Deborah is co-author, with Deborah Szekely of Cooking with the Seasons at Rancho La Puerta, for which she was nominated for a James Beard Award.  She has traveled widely in Mexico and is the author of eight cookbooks that explore her fascination with Mexican food and culture. Her most recent book is Mexican Instant Pot (November 2018). Her other books include Baja! Cooking on the Edge (an adventurous trip through the foods and wines of Baja California, chosen by Food & Wine Magazine as one of the best cookbooks of the year) Salsas & Moles, The Mexican Slow Cooker, and Amor y Tacos. She is co-author of Williams Sonoma Essentials of Latin Cooking and Rustic Mexican.  Through her restaurant work and writings, Deborah has been influential in the Southern California farm-to-table movement and in supporting sustainable fisheries in California and Baja. She has mentored many young chefs and supports community groups and culinary fund-raising efforts. She received her CEC ranking (Certified Executive Chef) in 2001 from the American Culinary Federation, recognizing over 20 years of professional cooking and other accomplishments.

 

Chef AJ offers hands-on culinary experiences, 3.5 hours each, during which you will enjoy preparing your own meal along with fellow cooks. Classes take place at La Cocina Que Canta, our culinary center on Wednesday and Thursday at 4pm.

Wednesday Hands-On Cooking Class 4:00 PM Sign Up
Each class $125+tax. Class subject to change, check your weekly planner and schedule for updates. The maximum number of guests per class is 8.

Thursday Hands-On Cooking Class 4:00 PM Sign Up
Each class $125+tax. Class subject to change, check your weekly planner and schedule for updates. The maximum number of guests per class is 8.

Inner Fitness: Love and Mindfulness

This lively, funny, and informative series will introduce skills for revolutionizing all of your relationships. You are welcome to attend all five talks or choose just one to fit into your schedule.

 

Talk number 1
Love Secrets from the Masters
Theories peak and many disappear, while a few remain true over time.
Six essential skills and practices to help all of our relationships thrive—some you can guess; some will surprise you. Each of these secrets can be learned and mastered by anyone with the intention, will, and skill.

 

Talk number 2
The BIG SHIFT: Mindfulness in Life and Love
It is the quality of our relationships that helps us feel safe and happy, and mindfulness teaches us to love in ways that support our own wellbeing and that of our relationships.
Transition from outer connection to inner fitness. Shift from reacting to responding, from mindless to mindful, and from belonging to another to belonging to yourself. Learn the skills and practices to shift you relationships.

 

Talk number 3
Love Cycles in All Our Relationships
Using the Love Cycles model from her two highly acclaimed books, Linda describes the stages of relationships, highlighting the challenges at each stage and demonstrating how to overcome each of these challenges and reinforce your strengths.

 

Talk number 4
Five Basic Skills in Communication (PAUSE)
Communication defines the health of our relationships, and communication under stress can be particularly challenging. Using the acronym PAUSE, Linda provides tools for developing a healthy inner dialogue, even when you feel the stress reactions of fight, freeze, flight, or fold. Using three surprising facts about conflict, she also offers insight into how to transform defensiveness into open curiosity.

 

Talk number 5
Wholehearted Living and Loving
Cultivating True Presence and Three Magic Words
What does it mean to be truly wholehearted? How does our impact on others affect us in leadership and love? How can you cultivate the gift of presence and learn the three magic words that help others feel truly seen and help you be all you are meant to be?

 

 

Linda Carroll holds a master’s degree in counseling and has practiced psychotherapy since 1981, specializing in couples and communication. She was licensed as a life coach in 2016. In her private practice, Linda works with couples in person and virtually throughout the USA. She has authored three books on personal growth and healing and is a frequent presenter at the Ranch on the topics of love, relationships, and inner fitness.

Simple Tools to Transform Your Life

Join Lifestyle Coach, Lisa Lewtan, on an experiential journey into our inner world where we focus less on information and more on transformation. Learn how to generate your inner resources, cultivate tools to foster growth, and trust your inner wisdom. Leave with easy to use take-home tools to integrate into your daily life.

In five sessions:

  1. Ditch Your Inner Critic B**CH
  2. Radical Self Acceptance
  3. What are you TRULY craving?
  4. What is Your Body Trying to Tell You?
  5. Why Tapping (EFT) will be your Favorite Tool

 

  1. Ditch Your Inner Critic B**CH

Do you know that voice in your head that tells you that you are not good enough? That inner critic b**ch loves to remind us of all our shortcomings and insecurities. In today’s session, we will start understanding where she came from and practice both inviting her in for a cup of tea and telling her to pack her bags and leave town!

  1. Radical Self Acceptance

Why is it so much easier to be kinder to others than to ourselves? In today’s session, you learn how to treat yourself with tender loving care, develop a gratitude practice, and upgrade your self-care to a whole new level.

  1. What are you TRULY craving?

Often we look at our well-being in terms of diet, exercise, and maybe some sleep. But what about fun? Learning new things? Sex? So many aspects go into making us feel good and when these needs are not met we often turn to substitutes like food, alcohol, or drugs. Today’s session will help you take a look at your life and see what is really going on and what is that you are really craving.

  1. What is Your Body Trying to Tell You?

So often we get stuck in our heads when making decisions and not realizing that our body has untapped wisdom. Come learn how to listen to and start trusting the wisdom of your own body to see what it is trying to tell you.  This information will help you make positive choices and ease the decision-making process. It will also help you to understand what a true mind/body connection means.

  1. Why Tapping (EFT) will be your Favorite Tool

Similar to acupuncture, Tapping (EFT) focuses on restoring balance to your body’s energy but you don’t need a practitioner at all. In today’s session, you will learn how to “Tap” and how to use tapping to reduce anxiety, break down limiting beliefs, and help get to the heart of the matter within minutes rather than hours. You will leave refreshed and amazed.

 

Lisa Lewtan is a Health & Lifestyle Coach, the founder of Healthy, Happy, and Hip, an award-winning author of “Busy, Stressed, and Food Obsessed!”, and a podcast host on The Healthy View. After co-founding a successful tech startup, Lisa collapsed from years of stress overload. Using the skills she developed as an entrepreneur, she self-hacked her own mind and body to restore her health go on to feel better than ever. With private coaching, online courses, workshops, and retreats, Lisa helps highly successful hungry go-getters to slow down, chill-out, develop a better relationship with food and stress, reframe negative self-talk, investigate habits and triggers, and set strategies for success.

Lisa’s has been featured in numerous publications including The Boston Globe, The Huffington Post, MindBodyGreen, and Better After 50, and has been a speaker at companies such as Kripalu, Canyon Ranch, WGBH, and Google.

Inner Fitness: Healthy Deviance

  1. Intro to Healthy Deviance: From Chronic Depletion to Empowered Flow
    The nature of the Unhealthy Default Reality (our real-life version of “The Matrix”); the vicious cycle it creates for health seekers; our “unseen problem” and the renegade solution offered by Healthy Deviance; scientific findings on the phenomena of “Ego-Depletion” and “Learned Helplessness” and where they might be showing up in your life.
    Tool/Exercise: Weird Symptom Checklist: Are You Breaking Yourself?
  2. Healthy Deviance — Nonconformist Competency 1: Amplified Awareness
    The health-and-sanity-preserving importance (and challenge) of paying attention to what is going on in and around you in the midst of nonstop distraction; noticing the signals your body is giving you; the value of cultivating awareness and willingness rather than focusing on what we commonly think of “willpower.”
    Tool/Exercise: Renegade Ritual: Morning-Minutes Practice
  3. Healthy Deviance — Nonconformist Competency 2: Pre-emptive Repair
    The power of getting ahead of accumulating damage that is done to your bodymind just by virtue of living in the midst of a pro-inflammatory culture; avoiding states of reactivity and vulnerability; building vitality, resilience, and autonomy in micro-doses.
    Tool/Exercise: Renegade Ritual: Ultradian Rhythm Breaks(URBs)
  4. Healthy Deviance — Nonconformist Competency 3: Continuous Growth and Learning
    The necessity and reward of embracing a “Growth Mindset” around health and self-improvement; getting comfortable with the natural tension between where you want to be and where you are, between what you want to know and do, and what you are capable of right now; building on existing strengths and areas of success and identifying areas of opportunity (as observed from abbreviated Life Wheel exercise).
    Tool/Exercise: Renegade Ritual: Nighttime Wind-Down
  5. Healthy Deviant Know-How: The Survival Skills of the New Era
    An overview of the broad base of key skills and literacies (beyond “diet and exercise”) that one needs to be healthy in an unhealthy world, and how to move beyond information-overload toward selective experimentation and practice; Healthy Deviance as a Flow experience.
    Tool/Exercise: Your Hierarchy of (Healthy Deviant Skill) Needs

 

Pilar Gerasimo is an award-winning journalist and a pioneering social explorer. Her passion: cultivating what she calls “Healthy Deviance” — the art of being a healthy person in an unhealthy world.

Best known for her work as founding editor of Experience Life magazine, which today reaches more than 3 million people nationwide, Pilar formerly served as executive editor of Healthy Living for The Huffington Post and is now Chief Creative Officer for The Institute for Integrative Nutrition in New York City.

Pilar is the author of an award-winning chapbook, Being Healthy Is a Revolutionary Act: A Manifesto for Thriving in a Mixed-Up World, and the creative force behind the popular mobile app: 101 Revolutionary Ways to Be Healthy. She also co-hosts a top-rated weekly podcast called The Living Experiment.

Pilar lives on an organic family farm in Wisconsin with her pit bull pal, Calvin. Her new book, The Healthy Deviant, will be published in January 2020 by North Atlantic Books.