I’ve got a little secret…
On the outside, I am the Program and Development Director at Wellness House of Annapolis. I love designing and implementing programs that support the healing of the body, mind and spirit, and championing our mission to raise money so we can keep our resources free to those who need us. I am honored, lucky and blessed to be able to be here to help sustain and grow this amazing community resource.
But…
Inside, I am really a musician who constantly hears the music of the universe in my head. I am always interpreting the glorious sounds I hear in the hopes that I can bring this music to the world, and it will help people feel better.
I’ve been a musician pretty much my whole life…
My mother told me I started asking at the age of 3 to take piano lessons. My piano teacher wouldn’t let me start until I was 5. I studied until the age of 18. However, I always had my own ear, my own way of hearing the music, of interpreting it on the piano. I used to write flourishes to classical music I was learning, and my teacher would yell at me “You can’t improve Chopin”! It was never about improving. It was about what I was feeling as I was playing. I would hear other things in the music and my hands would just play it…lots of fun when you are playing your own music but not a great idea when you are preparing Mozart, Beethoven, or Chopin for a piano competition! Turns out judges like the music the way it was written.
Later in my life…
As I studied to become a therapeutic musician, I would realize why I always heard the music within the music. Music and sound are some of the most powerful healing tools on the planet. Our bodies are made up of constantly vibrating energy. The different frequencies of music and sound are interacting with the body on subconscious levels (your whole body hears, not just your ears). The power comes in recognizing what kinds of sounds resonate with you and listening with “intention”. Just like you are drawn to certain colors, or design, or books, or aspects of nature, music is a very personal thing. When you find your “thing”, you have found a part of your soul that, when tended to, can help you to balance your body, mind and spirit.
Try this…
Find a piece of music that you love, or even just like. Sit comfortably in a quiet place, play that music (preferably with headphones) and listen like you are a detective trying to establish all of the pieces of a puzzle. You might notice rhythm (what kind?) or a piano, or a string section, woodwinds, etc. Then focus in on what is really touching you and reaching deep inside to make you feel something. Identify the feeling, where it is in your body, and let yourself really feel it! Go with the feeling until it runs its course, and a feeling of peace washes over you. It may take a few tries to find the right music. That is okay! Because once you start listening with intention, you begin to relate to music, ALL music, as a friend, meeting you right where you are, and finding the places within you that need attention, kindness, love.
As we welcome a new year…
I invite you to walk towards music that makes you feel something. Embrace the call, the beauty, the pain, and allow the places deep inside you to be heard and healed. Cry, laugh, sing out loud! Singing is breathing, and breathing is life. You don’t have to sing on key to breathe! Just embrace the friends you will find in the music and feel better.
Once you begin this relationship with music, “Oh, the places you’ll go!”