Thursday, May 2, 2013

Satisfying Moments

There is something so incredibly satisfying when I complete a composition project.   During a very long holding pattern with our show Jane Austen's PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, A Musical and its anticipated move forward into a UK production, I have taken this time as an opportunity to complete projects that have been in folders atop my piano ... a new Christmas Carol called "Noel" arranged for unison voices and then a more complex arrangement of it for SSA, and now another art song for my Garden Verses.  At the moment, I am also almost done with a new melody for the dark Advent hymn: O Come, O Come Emmanuel for SATB and flute.

As I complete each one, I realize what an astonishing thing it actually is for a composer to create something--especially since on paper, it still really lives in an abstract form  ... I am also astonished to recognize that as I bring every creation into this realm, I never really know if it will ever be sung, performed, or enjoyed.  And yet, I still create ...

This is why I am so grateful for all of the opportunities I have been given to have my work heard.  Each time anything is performed, the work is given a chance to live ...

It is why today I am so extraordinarily grateful for all of the people who believe in me and the work that I do.