Four Down, One To Go

This will be a short post this week. 

____________________

My wife and I attend The Donelson Fellowship. We have been there a little over three years and we can both say, we wish we had found the church earlier. It is such a wonderful place to worship God and to be in a fellowship of believers. It is a place where we can invest ourselves; not simply attend, worship and be fed be the message, but be involved. 

One thing that drew us to the Fellowship, other than the messages from our pastor Robert Morgan, is the music and drama ministry. It is, well, it is special! Such gifted leadership and amazing vocal talent. We’ve been performing our Christmas musical this week, Two from Galilee. I have been a part of the musical, portraying the role of Joseph’s father, Jacob. It is such a privilege to be doing this. 

When I look back on my life in the theatre, I can truly say there have been some memorable moments. Even so, it is doing things in church, for my Lord, that brings the most fulfillment. What I’ve done apart from church was hopefully entertaining for the audience. What I do in church, I pray, is but a small part of something that is life-changing for someone.

So, this week there are four performances down and one to go. God has been glorified and through the message of music has drawn individuals to Himself. That is awesome! 

The NSO

“God is a beautiful symphony, and we are blessed to play a note in His composition.”

                                                       ~ paraphrased from an overheard conversation

I am not always successful at it, but I do make a sincere effort to not look back on my life with regrets. My faith encourages me to try and understand that the decisions and choices that I have made, be they right or wrong, are for a purpose. They are all part of the journey that I am a part of. Sadly, sometimes, my resolve is not that strong and I am reduced to confronting a few regrets. I do this, then I move on.

This month has given rise to a particular regret. I’ll write about it here, then, I’ll move on.

I regret that I waited so long to regularly attend the Nashville Symphony Orchestra! 

Nashville is a mecca for music; all types of music. In our performance halls, bars, honky-tonks, arenas and even our street corners, you’ll hear some of the best music in the world played by some of the best musicians in the world. And in the heart of city stands the Schermerhorn Symphony Center, home of our Grammy award winning symphony.

I knew they were there. 

Through my years of living in Nashville I would occasionally attend a concert in the park or at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center. In fact, Gerrie and I were there to hear the last note of the last piece the symphony played at the Center prior to moving to their new home. I enjoyed these times and would say, “we need to do this more often.” But then, life would go on as usual and the thought would soon pass away.

This began to change on Friday, January 8, 2010. We attended our first concert in the new Center. That evening we were thrilled by violinist Hilary Hahn’s performance of Jennifer Higdon’s Violin Concerto. But the highlight was the Saint-Saens Symphony No. 3 in C minor, Op. 78 “The Organ Symphony.” This is perhaps among my favorite orchestral pieces. As the final movement progressed, I teared up. The music soared and it took my spirit with it.

But as before, when the music ended, we collected our programs, stepped into the cold night air and resumed our life. A year passed, but the gears were turning a little quicker now.

My wife’s favorite classical piece is the Violin Concerto in D Minor, Op. 47 by Jean Sibelius.  I learned that Stefan Jackiw was to perform the concerto with the NSO as part of their 2010-2011 season. On another January night we found ourselves at the Schermerhorn and this time it was Gerrie’s turn to soar.

Once the piece ended and the ovations were finished, she leaned over and whispered in my ear, “You know, if you were to give up your Titan’s season tickets, we could be doing this more often.”

Being quick in my response, I said, “Honey, you know, I have already been thinking about that.” And I had.

Fast forward to now.

We have just finished our first season as subscribers and have purchased our season subscription for 2012-2013. This month alone I have enjoyed the brilliance of our hometown symphony on four occasions including one magnificent performance at Carnegie Hall in New York. We’ll also be in attendance on Friday evening for the season finale of Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana. Each time I leave the hall I think, how glad I am to have finally made the decision to attend the symphony regularly. It has been one of the best decisions I've made in the last few years.

____________________

Our world moves too fast. Times that once seemed simple are now so complex. Each day is met with good and bad; positive and negative. It can be chaos. We are in a hurry for something. But as I’ve grown older I sense that God desires us to find the beauty in each day. What is beautiful to me may not be to someone else. This is alright. The point is that we each find what is beautiful to us about each day. It becomes our personal beauty. And we celebrate it!

The evenings that I spend listening to the Nashville Symphony is my beauty for that day. I celebrate as I walk up the front steps into the Symphony Center. I know that I am about to be inspired and transported. I am about to be given wings that will enable me to transcend whatever the day wrought on me. I know I will not be disappointed.

Regrets, I’ve had a few. One is that it took me so long to appreciate this precious gift of music. Now having gained that appreciation, I no longer need to look back, but ahead to hours of enjoyment. My years ahead will be filled with great music.

Greg

The Sounds of Music

When I was growing up my parents had a console stereo. The best way I can describe it is that it was made of a blondish colored wood and set on four spindle legs. The front was covered in a beige weaved type of material and in the lower part of the center section was a small amber colored light that indicated that the stereo was on. The lid opened in the center and the turntable and knobs were recessed in the console. The turntable would play 16, 33.3, 45 and 78 rpm records, and was equipped with a changer that allowed several albums to be stacked, providing hours of listening, in the case of long-play vinyl.

To my young eyes, my mom and dad’s console stereo was a thing of mystery and beauty.

I do not recall much of the music that I heard in those early years, but I do remember one piece in particular. It was Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Festival Overture in E Flat Major, or as it is more commonly known, the 1812 Overture. I would sit in front of the stereo for hours listening to the piece. Often times I’d have my copy of The Child’s World:  The World of the Arts laid open on my lap. On page 105 of the book was an illustrated layout of a symphony orchestra. As I listened, I would move my arms, conducting my orchestra on the page. Other times, when I still didn’t know better, I’d lay on the floor and press my eye against that small amber colored light, hoping I could get a look into the console and discover the mystery of what was inside the cabinet. In my mind, the orchestra and the audience were inside; one to the left and the other to right. What I could never quite figure out, as far as the Overture was concerned, was where were the brass cannons and church bells found that were present in the finale.

Music plays a large part in the memories I have. I am sure this is true for many people. When I look back on my two score and fourteen years I recall specific moments in life and the music that provided the soundtrack for those moments. The memories, like the music, may be euphoric or they may recall moments of great sorrow. Whichever they may be, the music provided a landscape on which these memories rest.

I can not listen to the Tchaikovsky piece without remembering those early years in my parent’s home. That memory then leads to remembering a story my parents shared with me; a story that involved having more cough syrup than was prescribed. The sweet taste was so nice that I helped myself to a bit more one night, and though it was not fatal, it was enough to make me drunk. My parents discovered this early one morning when I was hugging my father’s neck very tightly and singing, loudly, into his ear, The Star-Spangled Banner. Now, when I hear our national anthem, not only do I feel a sense of patriotism, I also remember an inebriated toddler singing for his parents. 

Over the years, my soundtrack expanded as my memories grew. It now includes, in addition to Tchaikovsky, other classical compositions by Samuel Barber, Aaron Copland, Leo Delibes, Antonin Dvorak and Camille Saint-Saens to name a few. But also present is music by The Beatles, U2, John Prine’s Hello In There, Paul William’s With One More Look at You/Watch Closely Now, and others. As I continue to explore the good times I’ll visit some of this music and the moments associated with it.

Music, like art, film and literature, are pieces that make up the fabric of our lives. At their best they can become a memory unto themselves. But more often than not, they are the things that help to illustrate our lives, to give it texture and color and help us to recall who we are, where we’ve been and it some instances, where we’re going.

What makes up your soundtrack?

Greg


Note:  A special thank you to my daughter Ali for sharing a photograph of her console stereo.