Deep Listening Ritual with Artist in Residence Lia Pikus

Deep Listening encourages us to drop into presence with ourselves and with others. This practice (described by composer Pauline Oliveros as “listening in every possible way to everything possible to hear”) can become a way of being in a new kind of relation to ourselves and our environments. Through this multi-sensory practice of attunement to sound, stillness, breath and movement, Deep Listening can help foster profound experiences of emotional catharsis and processing.

In this Deep Listening experience, participants will be guided through an hour-long musical meditation led by 25-26 Artist-in-Residence Lia Pikus. Lia will use her cello and loop pedal^ to guide participants through a Deep Listening ritual in Bigelow Chapel that will help to foster our relationship with impermanence, change and grief.

Participants are encouraged to bring a yoga mat, blanket, pillow, or anything else you can sit or lay on comfortably. There will also be chairs available.

Location: Bigelow Chapel

Cap: 40 people

*Please Note: Lia Pikus is not a certified Deep Listening practitioner.

^Loop pedals are used to record and “loop” musical sounds or patterns in order to add layers, textures, and backing tracks.

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LIA PIKUSis one ofMount Auburn’s25-26 Artists-in-Residence. She is a cellist, composer, and illustrator whose practice centers on art’s ability to cultivate experiences of presence and connection, both within community and in dialogue with the natural world. By drawing and reflecting on natural processes, Liaseeksto help audiences make emotional and sensory connections with their environments. As a Thomas J. Watson fellow (2023), she researched this connective power on a global scale, exploring the role of art in fostering community around the world. This research formed the foundation for her current explorations in live looping as a form of mediative ritual. It is also the central focus of her debut EP, Ritual, released in2024. Lia was an Artist-in-Residence at Shenandoah National Park in 2024 and at Mothership NYC in 2023. She is currently pursuing aMasters in Religion, Ethics, and Politics at Harvard University.www.liapikus.com