Team Building and Leadership Workshop with Music!

• Be more effective in our communication,
• Enhance team spirit and achieve better teamwork, and
• Discover your own leadership style and improve your leading persona.

(Read some testimonials here. Also, some of the suggested variations on this workshop are: “Rejuvenate with Music!” for medical, legal and other professionals in stressful work environment  to reduce stress and prevent burnouts.)

The ancient philosophers have said this thousands of years ago at different places in the world. We have always known it empirically. And now, the healing power of music is being quantified as data with the advancement of medical technologies. Music can lower our blood pressure, regulate our heart beat, and reduce stress.  Participating in short term musical training can improve our verbal abilities and executive function. A communal participatory musical experience, like moving to music, or singing in harmony together increases the level of our oxytocin; commonly known as the “love hormone,” enforcing our human bond.

The workshop will gradually increase the participants’ involvement in music, helping to shed any inhibitions we may feel with our colleagues, exploring our expressive range, and strengthening our bond.

Hearing to Listening

Switch your attention from passive hearing to active engagement with the sound that come your way. It expands your perception of your surrounding world and encourages you to explore how you project yourself to the world.

Discover a new world with your aurality.

Music “Feeling to Making”

1. Rhythm: Musical pulse is based on our heart beat and steps. It is natural for us to want to move together to music. Rhythmically synchronized movements energize us, and strengthen our bonds. In this segment of the workshop we will start from clapping, then walking to the rhythm of music. We may even dance a bit!
2. Melody: Musical melody reflects our natural vocal inflections, our primal and innate human need to express and communicate. Listen to the vocal tones, inflections and the timings of your conversation partner, beyond the words. Then explore your own choice of vocal tones, inflections and timings. Broaden the vocal expression from a monologue to a dialogue, a classroom presentation to a speech in front of a crowd. Then, compare it to songs we sing. The exercise will make our communications more effective.
3. Harmony: Consonant sound waves create synergy, whereas dissonant sound waves clash with each other. However, the tension presented by dissonance develop and drive the music forward by its need for resolution. Singing together in various harmonies with your teammate will induce oxytocin production. Commonly known as the “love hormone,” oxytocin is induced by any act of affection like hugging, or giving birth, making you even more affectionate.  Singing together also helps us accept different perspectives and opinions as desirable stimulation to our relationships and projects, just as you would a dissonant chord when singing in a choir. 
4. Composing: Incorporating the three elements of music we became familiar with in the previous segment (rhythm, melody and harmony), the participants will be divided into groups of 4 to 5, and compose a sound logo as a team. How can you brand the mission of your project, team or company to a 3 to 5-second,memorable sound bite?     

rhythm exercise: clapping together!

Discover, and Improve Your Leadership Body Language

Conducting: Each participant will stand in front of the group to have them clap and vocalize together. The physical posture, attitude, facial expression, and eye contact required for effective leadership will quickly become evident. At the same time, division of labors between the executors of details (team members) and overseers of the big picture (leader) is also clearly embodied in the conductor-musician relationship. It proposes an interesting point of discussion about various roles in each specific team.