Partner retreat · Berkshires · Mar 11 – 14, 2027Gong Reflections at The Thyme.
Four days of gong practice with Monica Mullen at The Thyme, an 85-acre retreat in the Berkshires. Mind, heart, body and spirit, explored through one remarkable instrument.
- Dates
- Mar 11 – 14, 2027
- Stay
- The Thyme, Salisbury, CT
- Getting there
- About 2.5 hours from NYC
- Led by
- Monica J. Mullen
- From
- $1,400 per guest
The practice
The gong is a mysterious mirror.
Gong Reflections goes beyond technique. It’s a balanced, immersive approach to the gong, designed to build a deeper connection to the instrument and to yourself as the person playing it.
The gong is easy to play, but there are skillful ways to sculpt its sound with intention. Over four days you’ll explore the intellectual and emotional sides of the practice as well as the physical and spiritual, with plenty of time to play.
It’s open to gong players at every level. The group sets the pace, and the focus is on playing well from the inside out: with presence, awareness and a feel for the people receiving the sound.
Four pillars
Mind, heart, body, spirit.
- The mind. Focus, clarity and meditative presence, and a real understanding of how the gong works.
- The heart. Tuning in to your own emotional space, so what you feel comes through in the sound.
- The body. Precise technique, mallet control, dynamics and sensitivity to nuance on any gong you meet.
- The spirit. Awareness, harmony and intentional living, and a glimpse of what sound can open up.
What you’ll practice
From a whisper to a swell.
Mallets are provided, and there are plenty to try. You’re welcome to bring your own.
- Mallet grips that balance control with fluid, comfortable playing
- How the gong’s membrane moves, and how to work with it
- Whisper drone: deep listening with sustained, delicate strikes
- Amplitude swells, rising and falling with precision
- Layering tones, drones and textures through angle, pressure and tempo
- Subtle nuances with small custom mallets
- Friction mallets for drawing out harmonics and controlled textures
The place · The Thyme
Eighty-five acres in the Berkshires.
The Thyme is a retreat center in Salisbury, Connecticut, on 85 acres of forest and meadow where the land meets the Appalachian Trail. It’s about two and a half hours from New York City.
The grounds include a sweat lodge, a sauna and ice plunging, with sunrise hikes right from the property. Sessions take place in The Temple, and meals are served in the Mountain House dining room. Guests stay in shared rooms across the property’s houses, including The Nest and The Cottage.
Four days
The schedule
A sample schedule. Times may shift slightly.
Arrive
Check in from 3 pm. An opening circle on mind, heart, body and spirit, dinner, then an evening gong meditation.
Listen
Meditative movement with Kylie at 7 am. A morning class on vibrational science and personal development, an afternoon on gong dynamics, effects and technique, and an instrumental sound meditation after dinner.
Play
Morning movement, then classes on the role of the facilitator, membrane work, tension and release, and friction mallets. A power-spot gong session outdoors, then a student gong meditation that runs late into the night as everyone takes a turn.
Weave
A closing class bringing it all together: the gong, the space and the listener. Closing circle and departure by 1 pm.
Included
- Three nights’ shared accommodation at The Thyme
- Chef-prepared meals made with local ingredients
- Every class, gong meditation and morning movement session
- Mallets to use throughout the retreat
Booked separately
- Travel to Salisbury, Connecticut
Up to 32 guests. Fully refundable up to 21 days before the retreat.
Your guide
Who’s holding the space
Monica J. Mullen
Monica is Assistant Director and Senior Adjunct Teacher at the School of Harmonic Therapy in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and has been a full-time sound practitioner since 2021. She has trained with sound teachers including Alexandre Tannous, Mitch Nur, Mike Tamburo and Michael Bettine, and leads private sessions, group sound meditations and retreats.
@monica.j.mullenMonica uses sound as an anchor for the present moment: something to tune into while the mind’s chatter fades out. Her work centers on a simple idea, that we always have a choice about where we place our attention, and that our attention is our superpower.
Plenty of people say they “can’t meditate.” The secret is having something to return to when your thoughts pull you away, and sound can be that. Overtone-rich instruments, played gently, layer tones that rise and fall in harmony and help listeners drift into calm, receptive states. Many of Monica’s clients say a sound meditation was the first time they truly dropped in.
At The Thyme she leads every class, meditation and the closing circle. Morning movement is led by Kylie. More about Monica
Hosted at
Four days with the gong.
March 11 – 14, 2027, from $1,400. Places are confirmed as soon as you book.