Sarah S. Bentley
Community singing is an ancient tradition in every culture - it is more prayer than performance.
It is a deeply important, and often neglected, part of our humanity.
Singing in community harmonizes our hearts and helps us feel present, connected, and at peace.
Listen to Sarah talk about Community Singing in a short interview.
Join longtime song leaders, Joshua Blaine & Sarah Bentley, for an evening of learning and singing songs to carry our hearts and movements through these troubled times. All voices welcome. No singing or musical experience necessary. Donations welcome but not required. We'll make some space for others to lead songs (optionally!) so bring one to teach, if you'd like. We meet in the main rotunda beneath the resonant dome. If you've never sung there, it's something to experience.
Wednesday, March 26, 7PM
Texas State Capitol Rotunda
Global Harmony Summit ~ Together We Rise is a 4 day virtual event with 36 Song Leaders and 18 hours of blissful singing and community tending.
Facilitated by Heather Houston.
Sarah Bentley will be leading songs on Sunday April 6th, 5-7pm Central time.
Fill your pockets with songs to fortify your spirit in these times. We are uplifting women's voices, and ALL are WELCOME to this global event.
April 3 - 6th (online)
Trinity Church of Austin (78751)
Join community song leader Sarah Bentley in learning and singing songs to mark this seasonal holy-day. This ritual is an invitation to sing ...
Trinity Church of Austin (78751)
Be Well Yoga House
Sisters in Harmony Austin is a group of people who identify as women (cis & trans). We circle and explore joy, grief, gratitude, sisterhood...
Be Well Yoga House
"I love singing with Sarah! She has a beautiful way of creating a space where everyone feels safe expressing their voices. I look forward to the joy and connection each week."
- Rakefet
"As I began to join the group in song, I felt the vocalizations connect to deep emotion within me that released without my effort. I knew I had arrived in the right place and that I’d signed up for more than I bargained for. Sarah makes learning the songs accessible in a way that feels connective with self and other and holds space for members of the group to feel heard and held by the group and the song."
- Kim O
"I overcame fear of singing with love acceptance and encouragement from Sarah and my new sisters. My experience was both invigorating and relaxing while inspiring closeness and warmth. I tuned in by connecting inside myself and with others in sharing, meditating, journaling and singing. Felt like swimming is a deep, warm spring."
- Patty
I’m feeling so grateful I came. Best church I’ve had in a while!
-Caroline
The community singing circle was so uplifting, relaxing, and full of beauty and connection. Sarah is a very strong song leader. This is truly healing and needed.
-Gretchen
The women's singing circle was among the most magical & powerful experiences of my adult life.
-Robin
Joy Harjo
Heart Body Song strives to create a safe space for all and in order to do this must acknowledge the harm that people of color have experienced and in some cases still endure. For community singing to be fully inclusive and safe for people of the global majority and others harmed by inhumane systems, Heart Body Song is committed to standing/singing in solidarity by taking an anti-racist stance in organizing and facilitating all of our events. Community singing is a form of collective healing and without intentional, proactive action towards dismantling systemic injustice, the inertia of our society will continue to perpetuate harm to those who are most oppressed. Without this stance, the community singing movement's aspirations for a peaceful, loving, and sustainable world will only remain a reality for the people living in white skin. In order to not perpetuate harmful systems, Heart Body Song is committed to cultivating a space that does no harm through setting a safe container for all bodies, collaborating with artists and healers of the global majority, leveraging my white privilege to transform harmful systems, and actively and regularly participating in (and sometimes co-leading) diversity and equity circles & workshops.
Cost & accessibility: To make Heart Body Song events accessible to people of varying income levels, cost is based on a sliding scale depending your income and generational wealth. Please contact Sarah directly if a payment plan would be helpful or if you are not able to pay any of these amounts, as no one will be turned away due to lack of ability to pay.
BIPOC sponsorship - 10% off for people who identify as Black, indigenous, or person of color. Use promo code 'BIPOC' in Eventbrite. Why do I offer a BIPOC sponsorship? The average white family has roughly 10 times the amount of wealth as the average Black family. By offering a discount, I hope to make it easier for people of the global majority to participate in my offerings because diversity makes our community stronger and healthier. Until such time that national reparations have been made and there is no racial wealth gap, it is up to all of us to support the community in small ways such as this.
Sarah S. Bentley, founder of Heart Body Song, is a song catcher, song carrier, and community song leader, based in Austin, Texas. She gracefully weaves the art of embodied singing, mindful movement, ritual, and communal prayer into her circles. Sarah started singing as a child and has performed as a singer/songwriter. Sarah incorporates qigong and meditation, as well as practices to build community resilience to provide a rich and healing experience. She has a beautiful way of creating a space where everyone feels safe expressing their voices. Sarah is a certified Sisters in Harmony song leader and offers regular women's and inclusive singing experiences around Austin and online. Sarah is also a Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation practitioner and is a devoted ally and activist of diversity and inclusion. Her experience leading intentionally diverse groups in circle processes has prepared her to recognize and facilitate discussions around race/microaggressions should they arise in the course of singing circles.
Read more about Sarah's life & legacy!
Stream my original music on SoundCloud. These recordings were captured on my phone on Garageband. Support me in my recording process by becoming a patron on Patreon.