Imagine the spotlight, the pulsing rhythm of chart-topping hits, then the hush of inner peace—Sarah’s life is a symphony of such contrasts. Once a demure figure in the back of a classroom, she ascended to pop stardom with a dance remix that made Whitney Houston’s classics pulse anew, only to transition into the healing silence of sound therapy. Our conversation with Sarah is a revelation of resilience, a tale of finding one’s voice not just for the stage but for the soul’s deepest calling. It’s a narrative that echoes my own brush with vulnerability during a health scare, showcasing the universal rhythm of recovery and rebirth that music so often underscores.
This episode strikes a chord on multiple levels—how music serves as a bridge to nature, to our raw emotions, and to each other. The resonance of a single song can open floodgates of tears or, as Leonard Cohen’s concerts did for many, create an atmosphere of shared introspection. We travel through melodies that marry spoken word with song, like the lyrical wisdom of Khalil Gibran’s “The Prophet,” and embrace the teachings of Ram Dass that guide us in transforming personal dragons of shyness into allies. Join us as we celebrate the harmonies and discords of life’s journey, the continuous learning through laughter and poignant insights, all to the soundtrack that plays in the background of our shared human experience.
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Malcolm Stern has worked as a group and individual psychotherapist for more than 30 years. He was a co-founder of Alternatives at St James’s Church in London and runs groups internationally.
He is the author of Falling in Love / Staying in Love (Piatkus 2004) and Slay Your Dragons with Compassion ( Watkins 2020). He co-presented Channel 4’s relationship series, ‘Made for Each Other’ in 2003 and 2004 and sailed on the ‘Rainbow Warrior’ with Greenpeace in the 1980s. The book he is currently writing is an exploration of the shadow and its necessity in our evolutionary development.
Malcolm Stern in conversation with guests.