Julie Follin lives in Rochefort in south-west France. She has played the handpan for six years and taught it for three, as a certified Malte Marten Method teacher. Asked to describe herself in three words, she says: solar, funny, generous. Solar because of her bright, positive energy, funny because she is always joking, and generous because she loves giving little surprises to the people around her.
From therapy to handpan
Before the handpan, Julie worked as a therapist. She slowly started to bring the instrument into her sessions and saw the effect it had on people. Her own way there went through the tongue drum: she enjoyed it but felt limited, went looking for something bigger and found a handpan maker just 20 kilometres from her home.
A lesson with Julie
Julie simply wants to help people with the handpan. Her lessons feel like a therapeutic session: very relaxed, and emotions are welcome. You start by getting used to your first notes and end up playing melodies together, which surprises most students in their very first session. Julie likes to explain the details, such as which part of the finger should touch which part of the note field for the best sound. Everyone, she says, can make a sound on the handpan, whatever their musical background.
She works with YataoPans and with instruments from other makers, so her students can choose. Everyone's needs and tastes are different, and she likes giving them the chance to compare.
A memory from a retreat
During one of her retreats in France, some participants were in tears after the first session. The sound the group created together was so overwhelming, beautiful and powerful that nobody expected it. People from all corners of the country connected through the sound, a bond Julie says you cannot put into words.
Where she plays
Her favourite place is the forest, or anywhere in nature: close your eyes, listen to nature and the animals around you. And there is no direct sun, which is good for the handpan. Her scale depends on her mood; usually the F# Low Pygmy, lately more often the E Amara 20.
Just try. Give it a go and let the connection with the handpan find you.
– Julie Follin
