I'm still watching the Ken Burn's Jazz documentary on DVD. Only made it through 2 out of 10 discs, so it's slow going but quite enjoyable. One of the things I've found so enjoyable in watching the documentary about the development of jazz music is how it inspires me as a musician. I've been a fan of jazz music for roughly 8 years, and listen to it partially because it challenges me to play better. In fact, one of the things I look for when I listen to certain artists and bands is how their music inspires me to be a better drummer. This is essentially one of the major reasons why the Dave Matthews Band is my favorite group - I will never be able to play as well as DMB's drummer Carter Beauford, or even be able to play exactly like him. BUT, that doesn't mean that I can't continually push myself to practice harder and incorporate beats, fills, rolls, and patterns that he uses into my own style or with the groups that I play in. I really only play in worship bands, and I really enjoy it. Part of what I try to bring to the table is a different feel or different types of fills and patterns that one wouldn't expect, but which still work for the song and potentially enhance it. I'm greatly indebted to Carter and DMB, as well as David Garibaldi of Tower of Power, Stevie Wonder, Dave Weckl (famous jazz/fusion drummer), and many others, because I look to their playing styles for inspiration and ideas for how to play better.
It's amazing to me how much music inspires the various parts of our lives. Different songs and genres can bring about so many types of emotions - love, joy, anger, frustration, excitement, passion, and so on. My mood can change radically because I play a certain song or band, or a song can help me express something that I had been feeling but was unable to articulate. But I think most importantly, music should inspire us to worship God as the one who created music and endowed people with the ability to play it, and for all of us to enjoy it. I'm not speaking strictly of Christian music or worship music in this case, but those both apply. Here's a story to illustrate what I mean.
About four years ago when I was living in Santa Cruz, I was working at Twin Lakes Church and got to play fairly regularly with Rob Patterson, the worship leader of the Genesis service (currently he leads the worship music at Faith Community Church in downtown Santa Cruz, an emerging church plant that is being backed by Twin Lakes). During that year, Sting went on tour for the "Sacred Love" album. My dad and I went and ended up finding Rob and his wife on the field at Shoreline Ampitheatre. We all loved the concert, and as Rob and I talked about it in the following weeks, he said that he enjoyed it so much he kept wanting to raise his hands in worship! But, he restrained himself, saying "No, I can't do that. This is Sting, not God." But he went to say that in those moments he would pray "Thank you Lord for creating Sting and giving him the musical abilities that he has, regardless of whether or not he acknowledges you as the source of those gifts. At least I know that they came from you and I can praise you for that."
Imagine that! Being inspired to praise God because of a Sting concert! My friend Rob and I were inspired because of Sting's music, and it challenged us not only to be better musicians, but to enjoy the fact that God created music and wants us to use it to celebrate Him and the life He has given us.
I feel like I could go on on and on about this because of how enjoyable music is and the different things it inspires. But rather than reading what I have to say about it, I'd rather hear other people's ideas. How does music inspire you? What kinds of music do you find inspirational, and what does that inspiration lead to? How would define inspiration within music? What do you feel compelled to do or to be when you listen to the music that you do? What do you need from music, and how does music speak to your emotions or help you articulate them? Does music have to be "Christian" or "worship music" in order for it to praise our Creator? How does music inspire you to think about God and follow Christ more intimately? Please, I'd love to hear some of your thoughts on any of this.
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