Today we’d like to introduce you to Genevieve Medow-Jenkins.
Genevieve, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I think there are a few ways to look at the birth of Secular Sabbath. One: I grew up at Esalen Institute in Big Sur California – an alternative education center for adults based off of the human potential movement. When I moved to LA, I was lucky to find myself drawn to like-minded innovators, but we didn’t have a space or environment that best fostered the way we like to hang out. Bars are loud, restaurants are expensive and use questionable ingredients, and Los Angeles lacks public spaces. Secular Sabbath began in a tiny oasis in Hollywood above the Groundworks across from the CNN building. The first event was a collaboration between friends: someone had the space and didn’t have a clear direction of how she wanted to use it yet, a bunch of friends had been experimenting in making ambient music with modular synths, and tea ceremony was making its way through the health and wellness community of Los Angeles.
This was essentially the ingredients for the first experience. It was a real life Stone Soup. The set up had one room for tea ceremony, and two rooms of music that happened concurrently – so it as a choose your own adventure environment. It was donation based, and I think basically nobody donated – maybe we got $100 donation, but at least 60 people showed up for the 5 hour event. All of the rooms were full of people at one point, and there was this little outdoor terrace between rooms that connected them, like a bridge. You could climb through a window and go into the other music environment, or just stay in the middle and get a little fresh air. In this space, we all felt this energy, like we had stumbled into something really special, and everyone was inspired to figure out ways to make it even better. This was in 2016.
Today in 2020, we have filled churchs and temples with 300 people, traveled to bring it to places as far as Mexico and Iceland, and the tickets are competitive with waitlists longer than 100 people. Obviously, things have shifted and we are going back down to more intimate experiences. But the heart remains the same: ambient music and sensory experiences that bring people together and into their own sensory bodies. Now we incorporate music, food, euphoric drinks and tonics, Esalen bodywork, OSEA estheticians for facials, tea ceremony, collaging rooms, workshops, and pillows, beds, and blankets. It’s a full spectrum experience. As we haven’t been able to do events since quarantine, we have moved it all online. It’s been really beautiful to expand our classes to things we may not have incorporated before like how to make candles from household materials, or gardening and composting, or how to braid your hair – all of which can be meditative and sensory experiences. And of course, the music.
Has it been a smooth road?
I think that growing anything that hasn’t been done before provides unique challenges. Perhaps like Burning Man, you don’t really understand it until you get there and see the environment, so it’s challenging to get funding. And without funding, it’s challenging to float it. It’s quite a skeleton crew of people who work with us – if you are making music, you’re probably also helping with sound and carrying speakers and throwing down rugs. We all are the first to get there and the last to leave. We try to keep the ticket price affordable so that everyone can attend and have access to what we are sharing. But right now, no one gets paid. We are all doing it as a labor of love. We get to see how impactful it is for people, even life-changing. It’s life-changing for us. So that’s what keeps us going. And knowing that someday soon we will start releasing the music that is made within this environment we have fostered. But it’s still a struggle. It’s exhausting and labor-intensive, but worth it.
We had to postpone our next two event because of COVID, which was a hard but necessary decision. In our disappointment, we pivoted quickly to streaming online which has been really beautiful and challenging. Through our online concerts and teachings, we have been able to reach and help people all around the world. What a gift! The challenging part has been figuring out the technical side to improve sound quality and video. Every time it gets better though. We have this opportunity to learn things we might never have tried to understand – like YouTube and twitch, which had previously been primarily aimed toward gamers.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Secular Sabbath – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
Secular Sabbath is an ambient music hearted event and community, that incorporates other sensory experiences to invite rest and restore a sense of personal wellness. I don’t think there is anything like it that exists. It provides a new way to experience music in general: get cozy, lay down, take a nap or have a wellness experience like tea ceremony, a facial, or massage. The music is made live, so as a participant, people are co-creating the art piece simply with their presence. If you think about abstract art – it isn’t complete without the ‘beholder’s involvement.’ The viewer imbues the painting or sculpture with their own history and experience to give it meaning. Secular Sabbath is the same. Each event is its own artifact, its own art piece, that is a co-creation of all of the entities there, and the pieces of music and art made within the space. I am most proud that we can touch people’s lives and make them believe in the magic of community again. I am proud that people laugh, cry, rest, retreat and try new things with us. I am proud that we have created a safe container for people to step outside of their comfort zone and learn something new.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
There is no creative nucleus like Los Angeles. We have met the most talented, creative, inspiring, and curious humans here. Los Angeles is like the watering hole for creatives around the world right now. We are all drawn to drink from the pool, and we meet at its edge. It has this unique satellite to the rest of the world that is easy to forget about. But when we create something in Los Angeles, it can have a ripple effect and impact so many micro-environments around the world. But it starts with us, with creating something authentic here with the people around us. How can we heal the world if we don’t heal ourselves? Los Angeles can house a lot of lost people too, pursuing old dreams that their new selves can’t even relate to. That’s how I perceive a lot of people who are chasing fame or clout. They are just looking for purpose, or affirmation to feel worthy. I actually see it as something we can help with – to offer them an alternative or a salve. Secular Sabbath can be a place where people can go inwards and reassess their goals and dreams and believe that something new can come true.
Pricing:
- Merch hats $34.99
- Merch socks $24.99
Contact Info:
- Website: secular-sabbath.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: instagram.com/secularsabbath
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/secularsabbath/
Image Credit:
Nicole Mangiola, Alex Free, Dominoe Farris, Clarissa Kerner
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