Songwriting, fine food, yoga, community: in a fabulous natural setting.

We’re Arvi Gosmo and James Gordon, and we’ve worked together since 2020 to create a weekend retreat experience that has turned out to be very popular for our many participants. With Arvi dividing her time between Canada and Rwanda these days, this year’s offering is in the fall in a new and gorgeous setting that really suits the autumn season. It’s a welcoming setting ideally suited to what we’ve been offering. We’re pleased to be at the Fells Meadows Retreat Centre, just outside the village of Castleton, Ontario, about 10 minutes north of Colborne and an hour east of Toronto. We urge you to check out this lovely venue at https://fellsmeadows.com

This will be an intimate, exclusive gathering with room for just 13 retreaters, including the main farmhouse, a fabulous Yurt for our classes and presentations, and several surrounding cabins overlooking their 100 pristine acres of natural beauty. (And yes, that’s Lake Ontario in the distance.)

Here’s what to expect-

The Weekend (Thursday 4 pm till Sunday Afternoon) includes:

● An opening reception and song circle.

● 6 delicious and nutritious gourmet meals cooked from scratch on-site by Arvi, including a cooking class on Saturday where you’ll create your own meal!

● A songwriting workshop, an assignment that will get you started on the song you’ll write, and a group writing exercise.

● Daily morning yoga practice

● Additional workshops on lyrics, melody and structure, co-writing, etc., designed once we know your interests and songwriting needs. We’ll reprise our popular ‘Songs you Love’ song analysis session.

● Friday and Saturday night song swaps and jamming with a campfire option. 

● Lots of time and inviting spaces for you to work, alone or collaboratively.

● One-on-one time with James to nurture along your song.

● Sunday final session where you’ll share your new song, get positive feedback and video/audio recordings of your newborn creations.

● 3 night’s accommodation, this year with separate or room-sharing options.

Let us know your dietary concerns. We know you’ll love the food. Coffee, tea, water, juice and snacks will be available throughout the day. Bring your own alcohol.

The Cost – (with rising food costs and this new, more luxurious venue, we’ve had to make a slight increase.)

$1095 for a private room. $995 for a shared room in the farmhouse. $1195 in your own cabin, with a %10 discount for couples. Taxes Included.

THIS year we are able to offer the Wendi Hunter Bursary, in honour of our dear friend, to pay for one person who wouldn’t otherwise have the resources to join us. Contact james@jamesgordon.ca for more info about this.

NO EXPERIENCE or Instrument necessary. You’ll write a great song and others will help. Payment by e-transfer to james@jamesgordon.ca

Questions? arvigosmo@gmail.com or james@jamesgordon.ca 226-971-9132

More info and testimonials from our participants at https://jamesgordon.ca/songwriting-retreat-weekends

Come join us!