Sharing Music Is More Fun Than Watching TV

Last night we had a piano-rama at church. Six members who play the piano shared about 7 minutes of music each with a mixed and receptive crowd. We had fun playing . . . and the audience loved it.

We'd suggested that everyone play something enjoyable, so one person played a couple of older standards and an original song, another played  Stardust (and lamented that her daughters don't know this fine tune). Another played wonderful, rich arrangements of old hymns with new and creative jazz harmonies. A special guest from Korea played energizing Gospel music, showing the international reach of this Southern tradition--and added a haunting Korean melody. Another played several settings of a hymn that he found particularly meaningful. I played Honeysuckle Rose and Linus and Lucy. Lots of variety.

There was a takeaway for me in this program. It is that people genuinely, truly enjoy being together when music is being made. No one was nervous--it wasn't a recital. It was fascinating to see the different approaches each person took to his or her 7 minutes . . . and to hear why each song was chosen. It's clear that lots of folks are doing music in their spare time. The audience truly enjoyed the program, too.

Of course, we could have watched a video of a world-class pianist, or invited in a top-level player for this program. But we just shared the music that we enjoy with people who enjoy being together. It was a lovely evening.

And it should happen more often--in homes as well as churches.