THE TUNED in MUSICIAN Because Who We Are As Musicians and Who We Are As People Cannot Be Separated
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THE TUNED IN MUSICIAN Because who we are as musicians and who we are as people cannot be separated. Sean-David McGoran Tuned In Press Lacey, WA The Tuned In Musician Because who we are as musicians and who we are as people cannot be separated. Tuned in Press Copyright 2013 Tuned In Press ISBN: 978-0-9897115-0-0 Printed in the United States of America ALL RIGHTS RESERVED No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means— electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise- without prior consent. Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are from the Holy Bible, The English Standard Version, Copyright 2001, Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Cover design by Maegan Riley For more information contact: Tuned In Press, Lacey, WA (360) 688-9911 http://www.thetunedinacademy.org/tunedinpress/ Contents Acknowledgments Introduction 1 Scales and Stumbling Blocks 2 Copping Some Licks 3 Tuning In: Meditation as a Discipline 4 Tune in to Scripture as Your Score 5 Tuned In to the Call 6 Tune in to Genuine Love 7 Tune In to the Community 8 Tune In to the Blues 9 Tune in to Justice 10 Tune in to Teaching Recommended Reading References Acknowledgments I would like to thank a few friends who have been an encouragement and help to me in fleshing this book out: my dear friend, fellow musician, and former teacher Daniel Bowerly for his helpful suggestions, and to my colleague and friend Mike Muender for his encouragement to write as well as his reading and editorial suggestions. In addition, I would be remiss if I did not thank some of the musician- educators that helped shape me into who I am today. To Gail Phillips who built a foundation of music, trumpet, and jazz in me in the Northwest, and to Jerry Bergonzi who convinced me that it was OK to be different, that I don’t need to sound like every other trumpet player. My wife Jenna is both my best friend, biggest encourager, and a fellow musician who knows my struggles to be a musician-educator well. Her patience with me as a husband, father, and fellow musician is beyond expression by words, and without her support, I could not do what I do every day. I would also like to thank my pastor, Dr. Kent Sweatman, and the people of Oak Cliff Baptist Church in Fort Smith that welcomed us into their family when we needed one. Finally, my mentor and friend Ron Shepard, and Dr. Jim Wilson, director of the DMin program at Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary. Introduction Why another Book on Meditation for Musicians? Because what we do as musicians and who we are as people cannot be separated- Barry Green SEAN-DAVID MCGORAN Meditation that Matters and Makes a Difference Some of the world’s finest musicians have written books that either describe or teach ideas, theories, or examples of meditation for musicians. Each of these books offers a certain uniqueness and even some excellent tips on incorporating meditation into musical practice. At the same time, sadly, the majority of them present meditation itself simply as a means to better music, without giving musicians any specific focus for these meditations. Musicians want to be better musicians, to be inspired, and to create new music. These are worthy goals, but if music itself is the highest goal, we are missing the mark on at least one level of what it means to be musicians, a people, and humanity! The meditations in this book will focus on several truths regarding what it means to be not just musicians, but what it means to be a people. Music itself, by definition, is largely dependent upon what the musician muses on; what the musician thinks about deeply or dwells on. Shouldn't meditation for musicians be deeper than just a means to better music? Meditation is not simply a means to better music, although this book will argue that it can and should be a regular part of your musical discipline and art, but meditation should also be a means to moving forward in far more than just your music. This book will start with a premise that renowned musician Barry Green introduces in his book, a fundamental truth: “what we do as musicians and who we are as people cannot be separated.”1 This is true of everything by the way! 1 Barry Green. The Mastery of Music: Ten Pathways to True Artistry. ( New York: Broadway Books, 2005), 4665-74. Kindle Edition. THE TUNED IN MUSICIAN What we do and who we are cannot be separated, ever. So the same is true concerning music and who we are. With this premise in mind as an important starting point, this book will look not only at meaningful meditations that matter to the musician on a musical level, but also on a personal, neighborly, and community level. The meditations in this book begin with the reality: what the musician thinks on, dwells on, and meditates on matters—it makes a difference what lies behind and underneath your music. Meditation that Centers on Truth Tuned In will not begin on a false foundation of a buffet of truths, but rather it will center on truth. When you walk in to a buffet, especially a good one, although there may be all kinds of healthy and substantial items to choose from, if you’re like me you sometimes skip the salad and go straight for the dessert. A buffet of truths is an oxymoron. Truth by definition cannot be subjective; it doesn’t change based on the person. So this book begins on this foundation, and this is where it differs from many other books you may find on the subject. This book begins with the presupposition (or starting point) that objective truth exists. Even my friend the atheist would agree with me on the problem with a buffet of truths: just because there are a bounty of items (or in this case truths) to choose from on a buffet does not guarantee that you will choose well, or in this case that you would choose truth at all! In fact, my friend even agrees with me at least in part on the concept of truth itself. He likes to say: Truth is not like a bunch of puppies in a room, and you get to choose the one you like best, which then becomes your truth. Something is either true or it is false, and a buffet of truths may contain no truths at all! Truth is objective, and SEAN-DAVID MCGORAN Tuned In will begin with this starting point and suggest that we center all meditation on what is true. If you have thumbed through the pages of this book, or even just glanced at the names of the chapters, you have probably already realized this book is saturated with Christian scripture and written from a decidedly Christian point of view. What that means is that this book starts from the understanding that God as revealed in scripture2 is real, and in fact has revealed all necessary truth regarding Himself, His people, and His creation (including music) to humanity through His word. This book will make no apology about starting from the biblical viewpoint, but I am hoping that whether you have thought much about this before, if you are not a Christian, if you reject the Bible, historic Christianity, or maybe even reject the idea of objective truth completely; that you will read on. Why should you read on? If nothing else you should read on because you have come this far and hold the book in your hand! You should also read on because you and I share a love for music, but mostly you should read on because this book teaches an understanding of meditation that is historical, respected, and based on objective truth that brings deeply profound and meaningful purpose to what we do as musicians. Even if you disagree with one or many of the assertions in this book, realize that millions of people the whole world-over, since the beginning of creation, have accepted these as fact, and the majority of the most beautiful music ever created has been written in meditation and reflection 2 Whenever the word scripture or the phrase God's word is used in this book what is meant is the word of God as revealed in the 39 books of the Old Testament and the 27 books of the New Testament known as the Christian Bible. THE TUNED IN MUSICIAN on such assertions. Finally, you should read this book because you love music and because you love people even more, even if you do not know or love the Creator. Shouldn't we all be concerned with making music that matters, music that is about more than just entertainment? I certainly think so, and I hope you will share that conviction if you do not yet. So I implore you, read on. Reading Tuned In I know how busy we all are. People are busy, and musicians are not exempt from the problem and plague of busyness. In fact, if you have a day-job, and many musicians do, you may be among the busiest! Of course, in addition to the busyness of life, family, and work; finding time to practice, write, and even listen to music often becomes scarce. You picked up this book though, which means you are at least interested and likely willing to put forth both time, mental energy, and effort into working on, reforming, re- visiting, or even implementing for the first time ever a meditation discipline into your life and music.