Intro to Meditation & Wellness for Artists & Musicians: Ryan Cunningham on Starting to Meditate

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In this video from Wellness for Artists: Music, Movement, and Mindfulness, a Berklee Online course written by Jennifer Caraluzzi, guest speaker Ryan Cunningham (who also teaches a section of the course) explores the fundamentals of meditation through a creative and accessible lens. Drawing from a variety of traditions, Cunningham emphasizes that posture, attention, and intention form the foundation of a beginner-friendly meditation practice. But most importantly, they encourage viewers to approach meditation as a flexible and personal process—whether focusing on the breath, bodily sensations, or surrounding sounds. Cunningham says it’s important that meditation is a “conversation of choice.”

“If it feels more helpful to pay attention to your breath, pay attention to your breath,” they encourage. Through relatable examples and gentle humor, Cunningham explains how meditation can help cultivate calm, clarity, and presence, even when the mind feels chaotic. This video is a reminder that it’s okay to begin wherever you are, and that meditation is less about “getting it right” and more about returning to attention with compassion.

Learn more about this course: https://berkonl.in/4ldN5s5

ABOUT JENNIFER CARALUZZI:
Jennifer Caraluzzi is a vocalist, educator, and wellness professional who has performed with Opera Theatre St. Louis, Boston Opera Collaborative, and the Boston Pops. She holds an MBA in Music Business, a Master of Music in Vocal Performance, and is certified through the Institute for Integrative Health as an Integrative Nutrition Health Coach. She is also a 500-hour certified yoga instructor. With more than 15 years of experience teaching and coaching musicians in voice, wellness, and career development, Caraluzzi says she believes one’s artistry can be fully expressed through practicing healthy habits in movement, mindfulness, nutrition, and sleep, as well as fostering healthy relationships and being part of a community. Through her own journey with several orthopedic injuries and chronic conditions, she has shaped her own artistry, becoming the artist she is today by practicing these four pillars of wellness.

ABOUT RYAN CUNNINGHAM:
Ryan Cunningham (she/they) is a Boston-based yoga + dharma practitioner. Their practice arises from the view that yoga is both an experience of, and a path towards cultivating wellness through the practice of embodiment, meditation, prayer, and reflection. In 2009, Ryan moved to Boston where she earned a master's in Jazz Composition from New England Conservatory. Since then she has taught at and managed many yoga studios and dharma centers in the area. Ryan’s teaching focuses on helping students to utilize these practices to help express themselves and live purposefully in the world. Currently, Ryan teaches at Boston Yoga Collective and Berklee College of Music. Their primary teachers and mentors include Tom Alden and Lama Justin Von Budjoss.

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Wellness for Artists and Musicians | Jennifer Caraluzzi | Ryan Cunningham | Meditation | Yoga | yoga + dharma | Berklee Online