Make Some Joyful Noise!

My oldest son, Mason, is moved by music. He doesn't just like music. He doesn't just even Love music. Music is in him...in a way that is pretty difficult to describe. But I understand it. He's like me, and my father.

Mason doesn't walk pass an instrument of any kind without wanting to touch it and learn how it works. And, with just a little time he figures it out. His drumming skills are so good that he makes two crayons and upsidedown plastic cup sound fabulous. I even bought him a drumkit for his birthday. My mother still thinks I am crazy. But he had created a drumkit out of plastic "stuff" he found around the house, and really it was time for an upgrade to support his talents. Frankly, he needs another upgrade soon to a full-sized kit. He's that good at only eight years old. And, keep in mind, he has yet to have a single lesson. He also is teaching himself bass and guitar. He even has a special rare guitar style which is essentially a hammering technique on the strings instead of mere strumming. But it's very specific and notation is non-existant for this style. (I did locate and contact another who uses this style---a grown man in Scotland named POL http://polarida.com/ who has been helpful to encourage Mason in this style that they both believe they each invented.) So since the notation is not there, Mason made up his own notation. Yep. He just figured out a way to notate things and did it. You'll also hear this type of hammering technique in one particular scene in a movie called "August Rush". Mason owns this movie now.

There is one day last winter that I'll never forget in my entire life: the day we all went to see the movie "August Rush" in a second run theatre nearby our home. Mason really wanted to see the movie after seeing a preview where he heard Freddie Highmore's character say "I believe in Music like some people believe in Fairy Tales". He looked at me and said "That's just like me, Mom." And sure enough, watching that movie I saw more and more that was like my little man. They somehow extracted the essense of my little guy and I sat watching him on screen.

Now, don't get me wrong, this is not the best movie that ever was made or anything. However, for anyone drawn to music like Mason, or myself (I relate here because I am much like him this way--although he's a much better percussionist than I ever have been), you can overlook the sappy predictable parts and revel in the rest of the film~~the part of the movie that just celebrates and gets wrapped up in the joy of making music, hearing music and loving music from somewhere deep inside yourself.

Music is a communication, like any art form. And this movie does a nice job of showing that anything at all can become music, depending on the openmindedness of the listener. A dribbling basketball can be the carrying drum beat; scuffling shoes can add another layer; trickle of water; beep of horns; whistles of wind; and songs of everything around thrown together can be music or noise depending on how we choose to listen to it.

Sometimes it gets hard being home with three little kids who already bored with summer vacation and are winding up the dog or the 6 cats (yes you read correctly---six.... an adoption of a cat in February turned out to be an adoption of an already pregnant cat so I played midwife in April), and squabbling with each other or squealing in delight. These sounds...how should I hear them? Noise or Music? Someday not too far away I'll be sitting around with kids all gone off doing their things, or full-grown living on their own. It will be very quiet then. Will I be wishing I could hear some of that Music? I am not the Mom who cries at the bus when the kids went off to their first days of school. But somehow, I know I'll wonder why I yelled "QUIET" quite so often. I'll think of this the next time I open my mouth with that intent. Maybe I'll make some noisy music right along side them instead.