Back in the Groove

Have you ever been away from something, or someone, for a long time? The heartache and hurt multiply as the days pass, and the yearning for them seems to grow exponentially. This is really hard. In my case, this time, I'm talking about music and teaching.

I had this incredible experience working with the foremost artists in choral music at the University of Miami. Total immersion left me washed in the beauty of music and quenched my thirst for artistic fulfillment. All the while, I had lost my fulfillment that I needed in my family and friends, being so far away.

Now that I am "back home again in Indiana," I am again filled with the joy of being close to those that I love, but have been left empty when it comes to my love of music. Once you've experienced something so pure and so beautiful as singing in a chorale like that of Miami, it leaves a large hole.

Thankfully, my good friends have risen to the occasion. In this interim period between Miami and Ball State, I have been invited to come and work with the choir at my high school. I am aiding in their preparation for concert choir contests, and will continue working with them to rehearse for their Spring Spectacular, later in the semester.

As I sat in front of the piano in the rehearsal room the other day, with students surrounding me, my heart felt so full. I was excited and rejuvenated. My ears were listening closer. I was hearing the great performing going on around me and was also able to catch issues that we could improve upon. It felt so good to be able to stop the group, offer a suggestion, and watch as their sound improved.

And even better - my high school teacher was writing down what I was saying. It was a great moment where I began to feel like a colleague, a peer, of my former teacher. He's told me this many times, but actually being part of it - that's really something.

And that's what music is all about - being part of it. There's not a person alive who hasn't been touched by the power of music. You just can't help tapping your toe, dancing, listening, reacting. It's a language so far above our words alone. It's the power of emotion with the power of logic and reason, all rolled into one. What a powerful force we have been given the privilege of wielding. It is my hope that we can always be good stewards of this great and powerful gift to the world.

Until next time,
JF