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Artistic Demands

by | Dec 7, 2010 | Blog, The Industry | 4 comments

I realized it about halfway through the second service  at our church this past Sunday: I love playing drums.

Nothing new there of course, I’ve been playing since before I could walk and spent a good portion of my adult life as a professional musician. But still, there are times when it just…hits. It hits me that I know how to play and that I enjoy knowing how to play. It’s fun to “go for it,” pull it off,  turn the heads of everyone involved and put a smile on their faces. Nice.

I don’t have anything profound to share – and in fact, I wasn’t going to write about this except for two things that crossed my path yesterday. Both of them HAD to be shared.

First was a note from a Facebook friend:

For 47 years I have believed that a life without music is one that lacks color, flavor, or soul.  Though I am something of a wordsmith in my work, I’ve never been able to find the words to truly and fully express how I feel when I’m playing.  Fortunately, a 5th grader at my Central Valley Elementary did.  This little girl wrote:

“When I play my music, I am in my own little world, playing in a music symphony.  I am going for the gold, reaching high standards, and I have a passion for it in a way that words can’t describe.  I get that feeling when you feel that you’re in the right place in the right time and you keep going and going until you stop when you are as good as ever and when I play, the world gets beautiful, better, and interesting.

But when I don’t play, the world is ugly, plain and boring.  Music is my passion and if I do it forever, then the world will be gleaming with joy and will be filled with music.  If not, than the world will be as emply as a bottomless pit.  Music has a huge effect on me and making me stop will just cause a severe sadness.  That is what music is like from my point of view.”

I couldn’t agree more or have said it better myself!

The second was a post from a dear, and dearly talented friend entitled Come On Baby, Light My Fire. Here’s a quote:

“If you’re an artistic soul, you speak the language of ignition. That ability, that gift, is volatile and powerful, and it demands declaration.”

Read the whole inspirational thing and enjoy the snow too (Yes, it’s snowing on her blog).

So what about you, what do you do that makes the world “beautiful, better, and interesting?” What is it you have that “demands declaration?” What are doing with it?