Yoga Community, a yoga studio in Sonoma, will host the first Sonoma Yoga Fest this fall, Oct. 31 to Nov. 2.
The festival will take place in multiple locations in Sonoma Valley and will feature yoga teachers and musical artists from Sonoma, the Bay Area and beyond. Teachers will be presenting a wide range of classes, workshops, lectures, and presentations.
Lisa Murray, a Sonoma resident of 14 years, and owner of Yoga Community, is putting the event together.
“This event has been in the works for many years, and I am so delighted to see it become a reality thanks to a dedicated planning committee, and the support of our community.” Murray hatched the idea of a yoga festival during a meeting with a friend nearly four years ago. She left the meeting excited about the possibility of a yoga festival in Sonoma, and bought the domain name, sonomayogafest.com right away.
Finally able to dedicate the time and resources to the project, the Sonoma Yoga Fest idea resurfaced this summer. “We had the good fortune of booking Kirtan musical artist Jai Uttal and his wife, Nubia Teixeira, to come to Yoga Community to do a workshop on Nov. 1. Our studio manager, Jes Williams, suggested that we create Sonoma Yoga Fest around Jai and Nubia’s workshop, and from there we were off and running!”
Fully booked, the festival now features more than 80 activities to choose from over the three-day event.
In addition to Uttal and Teixeira, the festival includes Michele Hebert and Mehrad Nazari of San Diego. Hebert has taught yoga and meditation for more than 30 years and is the author of “The Tenth Door, An Adventure Through the Jungles of Enlightenment.”
Hebert will headline the event with a keynote address on Friday evening, and will also be presenting a workshop on the inner practices of yoga, and hosting a morning meditation class. Nazari has just finished penning the book, “Enlightened Negotiation,” and will be teaching a session on the subject titled, “Enlightened Negotiation: Spiritual Laws to Connect, Create and Prosper.”
From the Bay Area, the festival features Sherri Baptiste, Mark Morford, Sean Haleen, Jason Bowman, Ulrika Engman, and Ariel Mihic.Sonoma County teachers include Parmatma Simone, Shy Sayar, Casey Beck, Barbra Brady, Elizabeth Lemert, Melanie King, Sofi Milani, and many more.
In addition to daytime activities, the festival will feature musical events each evening.On Friday, Oct. 31, from 8 to 11 p.m. the festival will present BollyWeen, a Bollywood-inspired dance party featuring DJ Dragonfly, a San Francisco-based performer who spins a bold mix of World fusion electronica. Bollywood attire is strongly encouraged and there will be an Indian style station and dance lessons to introduce attendees to all things Indian.
On Saturday, Nov. 1, the festival will present Jai Uttal in concert. Uttal is a Grammy nominated pioneer in the world music community. His eclectic east meets-west sound has put his music at the forefront of the world fusion movement. Uttal’s musical roots embrace a rich variety of cultures and traditions that span the globe and the centuries. From the hillbilly music of the Appalachian Mountains to the passionate strains of Bengali street singers, from the haunting rhythms and melodies of ancient India to contemporary electric rock sounds, Uttal’s music distills the essence of diverse musical forms.
Both the BollyWeen Dance Party and Jai Uttal’s concert will take place at Presentation School on Broadway in Sonoma.
Sunday night features DASI Karnamrita at Yoga Community to finish to the festival. Classically trained as a vocalist in India for nearly a decade and immersed in kirtan (devotional music) since birth, Karnamrita Dasi is one of the world’s leading kirtan singers as well as the first female Westerner to be classically trained in this sacred art. Since her mother’s passing in 1998, she has dedicated her life to composing, recording, performing, and collecting rare Sanskrit poetry in order to continue and honor her mother’s passion for sharing the ancient bhakti tradition with others.
There are three price packages to choose from to attend the event.The three-day pass is $395, a two-day pass is $275, and a pass for locals is $195. The music events are included in the cost of the passes, but tickets may be purchased to attend the BollyWeen Dance Party ($20) or the Jai Uttal concert ($40) separately.All tickets can be purchased by visiting sonomayogafest.com.
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