Stephen Fitch

The Encounter of Music

Ever since I was old enough to walk, I would bang my hands on things to make rhythms.

Later, when I was nine years old, my parents bought me a drum set- then it started, the advent of

my musical adventure and experience. I still play the drum set, along with an african hand drum

called a djembe, the piano, and the trombone. Music has always had a comforting domain in my

heart, giving me energy, enjoyment, and solidarity among those playing or listening with me.

Music is the medium in which I proclaim my utmost passions and emotions, like the masterpiece

painted on a canvas, conveying the painter’s innermost sentimental vision. Music allows me the

unique capability to illustrate my praise for God, my love for Him, and my desperate need of

Him.

I have researched the influence of jazz and blues music on modern culture for my senior

project, and this alerted me with the gravity of music on the surrounding society. I was pre-

sented with the sheer incredible influence music has on a people, and the value of music for

mankind. Music is a universal vehicle to transport emotions, ideas, feelings, beliefs, and experi-

ences through the omnipotent use of an overwhelming sensual flood-- for its physical expression,

aural digestion, and mental stimulation. I have discovered music to give me joy, excitement and

woe. Music tends to be a catalyst to the listener’s mood, giving reemphasis on the feelings pre-

viously felt by the listener.

At my local church, my friends and I play in a praise band together. In this dynamic, I

observe the power of music within a group vividly. I realize that playing music together to offer

to God allows a fellowship that is unbreakable, like a rope, which is tightly wrapped with differ-

ent strands. The last strand pulls the others tightly together, as the tree of the forest, or the coral

of the ocean, which brings the creatures together into tranquility and solidarity. This crucial ele-

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Stephen Fitch

ment, musical praise, allows my friends and I to express and relieve ourselves of worry or anxi-

ety; music then, presents us with a safe haven of light, allowing us contentedness and grace of re-

newal, safety, and refreshment to revisit our true passions and our intimate God.

Music has been a powerful escape for me personally, as I have recently played piano and

sang simultaneously. This private transmission of my virtues and feelings gives me deliverance

from my issues, allowing me a seemingly tangible presence of warmth, created by the hearing of

my voice, and affirmation of my passionate feelings.

After playing trombone in a concert and marching band setting, drum set in a praise band

setting, and piano in a private setting, singing in a choir was the next step to experimenting with

the musical experience. After starting last year, singing gives me enjoyment and pleasure by

granting me the ability to actually utter words I am feeling and not just internalize them. Singing

is an interesting and exciting venue for my musical journey, and I am looking forward to its abil-

ity to continue to concede me a realm of safety and affection for future days.