I started playing the flute in the ninth grade, when I took a general music class and we all had to choose an instrument. At the time, it made sense to me to take something that was easy to transport back and forth to school, and I loved the way it sounded. Turns out I had a bit of a knack for it, at least at the high school level. I convinced my mom to let me rent one for the summer, and when the school year started up again for the tenth grade, I made the argument that the instruments at the school were crap (was the truth) and a good player could struggle with a shoddy instrument. Lakeshore Music had a rent-to-own program, so mom agreed and we kept her so that I always had my own reliable instrument to play. By the time I graduated high school, she was mine. I played at church on occasion, and when Now and Then started up, I played on one or two songs, but nothing serious.
She spend most of her days in a cool, dry place in a dark box. A velvety lined box, but not a lot of daylight for my baby. The box would poke out of the bookshelf just a bit, a reminder of the fact that I clearly didn't have the passion for her that I used to, that I didn't see her as a part of me any more. I contemplated selling her; after all, it had been years since I played her every day, or even once a week for that matter. But she was mine and she didn't owe me anything, but I owed her something.
Eventually she moved off the bookshelf and into a storage box to be moved. And she stayed there, out of sight and out of mind.
One of the things I have come to love about working with Brian and Jim is that they encourage me to try new things, to push myself, and to experiment with my instruments. Building arrangements of songs usually performed by a full band with just the three of us can be an interesting process at times, so when we were working on Madness (Muse) and something just felt like it was missing, Jim suggested "Why don't you play your flute, Sarah!!??". Now, his commentary was designed to jab a little, as it's been a long standing fact that I won't just pull her out and play her anywhere. The rest of the Now and Then crew have been bugging me for years to play more, but I've always been afraid I wouldn't do it right, or that I would sound like an amateur amongst the amazing musicians I play with. This time though... I thought why the hell not.
Just because they encourage me, however, doesn't mean they hesitate to tell me when something sounds sour. This happens more than I'd like to admit, but we've spent so long apart, she and I... We need to find our groove again so we can make beautiful music together. And we will.
She spend most of her days in a cool, dry place in a dark box. A velvety lined box, but not a lot of daylight for my baby. The box would poke out of the bookshelf just a bit, a reminder of the fact that I clearly didn't have the passion for her that I used to, that I didn't see her as a part of me any more. I contemplated selling her; after all, it had been years since I played her every day, or even once a week for that matter. But she was mine and she didn't owe me anything, but I owed her something.
Eventually she moved off the bookshelf and into a storage box to be moved. And she stayed there, out of sight and out of mind.
One of the things I have come to love about working with Brian and Jim is that they encourage me to try new things, to push myself, and to experiment with my instruments. Building arrangements of songs usually performed by a full band with just the three of us can be an interesting process at times, so when we were working on Madness (Muse) and something just felt like it was missing, Jim suggested "Why don't you play your flute, Sarah!!??". Now, his commentary was designed to jab a little, as it's been a long standing fact that I won't just pull her out and play her anywhere. The rest of the Now and Then crew have been bugging me for years to play more, but I've always been afraid I wouldn't do it right, or that I would sound like an amateur amongst the amazing musicians I play with. This time though... I thought why the hell not.
Just because they encourage me, however, doesn't mean they hesitate to tell me when something sounds sour. This happens more than I'd like to admit, but we've spent so long apart, she and I... We need to find our groove again so we can make beautiful music together. And we will.
Sarah ♫
Bliss - Voice