Jane Valencia

As a performer, magical naturalist, and Reiki & sound healing practitioner, Jane Valencia nourishes the imaginative soul of community and the mythic sense of oneself with harp music, folklore, song, poetry, story, natural mystery, and celebration. She has musically adventured with the harp since 1987, performing and recording with the Pacific Coast duo Spookytree, and, as a Reiki Master-Teacher, offering energy healing, healing story, and song blessing in her private practice, and occasionially in performance as well. Whether in concert, with community, or one-on-one Jane's improvisational style is light-hearted and responsive, voicing the magical inner nature that is threaded -- so the old tales say -- into each one of us.

Musical Background

Musically, Jane began in the classical field, exploring oboe for many years and performing orchestrally and with symphonic bands. In college she branched into early music, singing in a collegium musicum and studying music history. Inspired by several children's fantasy books that featured Celtic harps, Jane acted on her fascination with the instrument after spending half a year in Wales studying medieval Welsh bardic poetry. She bought her first harp in 1987 and opened to whole new realm for her of music creation - that of arranging one's own music, composing, and the magic of making and unearthing the music in the moment: improvisation.

She released her first solo album, RoseGarden, in Spring 2000.

Bardic Harp

As a 21st century bard offering Celtic harp, storytelling, poetry, and song, Jane performs 30 minute, 60 minute, and full-length concert versions of Forest and of her version of the Selkie legend, as well as performances of other stories and music. Please contact Jane at jane-orale at this domain for more details.

Harp Teacher

A teacher of Celtic harp for nearly 20 years, Jane specializes in helping the student unearth his or her inner music while also tending to the techniques, skills, and artistry of becoming a harper. She teaches both nylon-strung and wire-strung harp techniques. Lessons include improvisation and arranging with opportunities to focus on therapeutic harping skills, bardic harp, the harp as soulwork, composition, Celtic musical styles (Scottish, Irish, and Welsh), and Latin American harping styles and techniques, according to the student's interests. Jane teaches harp to all ages.

Community Singing

In 2006 Jane's projects included founding and directing Vashon Island's Forest Halls Folk Choir, leading weekly Community Singing at the Vashon Farmers' Market and biweekly Singing Circles in forest and field. A teacher of harp since 1988, Jane offers bardic harp, musical medicine weaving, the village harper, modal theory, and other special topic workshops. Look for Lakeside Singing - community nature singing at Wallowa Lake - during summer 2009 in N. E. Oregon.

Magical Nature

As a "magical naturalist" Jane leads nature awareness adventures for all ages woven with story and song. Jane has apprenticed with Wilderness Awareness School in mentoring youth and in nature awareness skills, and continues study in their Kamana Naturalist Training program, She also completed an ethnobotany apprenticeship with ethnobotanist and herbalist Erin Kenny. Jane delights in discovering who we are when we in the heart of our nature, a place of joyfulness and story-making that we as human beings enter into easily when we feel at home in the natural world.

Bardic Healing Artistry

As a bardic healing artist Jane's practice is grounded in the Reiki-Seichim lineage of energy healing. Offering Reiki since 2003, Jane received her Master-Teacher Training in 2006. In her practice she combines energy healing artistry with other modalities, calling upon her study and exploration of sound healing, music for healing, nature awareness and natural mystery, and healing story. Sessions are 1 1/2 hours long and include Reiki treatment, live healing music with harp and song, connecting with nature, and "storytending", in which we explore an aspect of the client's story within the lenses of metaphor, myth, and nature.

Whether a client comes for relaxation or nurturing, a specific physical or emotional ailment or pain, or for honoring and recognizing a threshold or transition time in one's life, it's Jane's wish that the session may serve as a "blessing from the village" -- an opportunity to invite, illuminate, and witness the client's unique story, nature, and path in this world.

To schedule a session or to find out more, please contact:


Take me into Forest Halls

Updated October 18, 2008