You truly never know where the best blessings might come from. This morning, I posted a comment on a FB discussion with a dear friend who is in recovery from a brain tumor. She is healing very well, thank goodness, but shes still struggling with language processing. Lots of her friends chimed into the discussion. I decided to post as well, because her difficulty reminded me very vividly of my own. When I was a composition student, I had awful, awful trouble dealing with even the simplest notated music. I essentially couldnt read or write ABC, see Dick and Jane. But thats what composers *do*, read and write notated music. When I heard about stroke survivors struggling with language, I thought Yes! This is how it feels! You look at the first word, okay... got that.. move to the next word --OOPS! what was that first word? Everything was slippery, like water running out of my hands. It took enormous concentration to do anything at all with sheet music. Unfortunately, my college advisor treated me as if I was stupid. He tried to get me to quit composition. Maybe try arts administration, get an office job assisting real musicians. But I didnt quit. I found other ways to compose. I used graphic (non-traditional) notation, expanded into non-visual ways of composing, such as improvisation and immersion into cultural idioms. When I write music for dance companies, I dont notate a sound score to accompany the entirely separate medium of dance. No... I hear the music, on the dance stage, in the line and weight of their *bodies*, so thats what I make audible. I do the same when I sing the artwork at galleries, and for ceremonies dedicating public sculptures. I make artwork audible. And when I write music for films, I fill my head to bursting with music of the relevant historical period or cultural style, then pop over to the recording studio and improvise-improvise-improvise. I might have become a conventional composer, writing yet another classical string quartet or concerto. Instead, I have written and sung music in two dozen languages --in that style, full and complete immersion. Flamenco, Indonesian music, Tibetan songs, Edith Piaf, Welsh songs, Billie Holiday, Peking Opera, etc. etc. etc. I scat in all jazz styles, swing, bop, Gypsy jazz, Dixieland trad jazz. Ive worked with John Cage, sung for an Oscar-nominated short, directed a feminist Pagan gospel choir, and sung the entries in a vegan food competition. Many of you have heard my channeled concerts, and reported profound healing from those songs (bless you!). In all of these, I never, ever simply sat down with music paper and wrote a score. Instead, I found more adventurous ways to do it. Now, years later, with much, much discipline and hard work, even my written notation skills are much improved. My private practice now includes working with people who have serious difficulties with notation and ear training, because I understand how hard it is for them. I truly do understand (bless them!). I will admit, some of that journey --especially not being seen as a real musician-- was bleepin hard. But now, I thank ALL that is good and holy (yee-HAW!) that my college advisor kicked me off that beaten track. I am *so* grateful for that. If I had taken the ordinary route as a normal musician, I would never have known all these fabulous, rolicking musical adventures. And Im not done exploring yet, far from it (can I get a yee-HAW?). Its all good. I tell you, it really is. So....this is my message to you this morning. You truly - never - know what wonderful places your challenges might take you, dear friends and fellow travelers. You never know what amazing adventures you may discover, all because *you* got kicked off the beaten track. I wish you sweet glorious blessings on that road, with delicious unforeseen discoveries. You never know, my friends... you truly - never - know...
Posted on: Sun, 13 Jul 2014 14:30:43 +0000
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