Inspiration, Or Something Like That

I’m continually amazed at how much music can attach one to a place, a situation, or a person. I’ve written before about music as inspiration, but it’s been seven or eight months since I wrote an article for Chorus, so I figured I`d go with a topic I`m familiar with. I apologize if things seem disorganized, I`ll try my best, but I fear my point won`t be made until the article has aged a wee bit. Like a fine wine, which I`ve also come to appreciate. Oh, how things change! I can`t think of a creative segue, so the paragraphs in this article are assigned to these subjects: Introducing the article (this paragraph!), naming songs after places and failing at naming songs after places, new songs I`ve written that don`t fail at naming songs after places, a musical situation I had in a giant bathtub, my neglect of how much music I have that already has the power to inspire, comedy as another medium of self-discovery, and another paragraph about how music and comedy are similar. Then an outro.

The last time I wrote about the inspiration I receive from music I remember I was specifically enamoured with the physical, real places I was in when I heard certain songs. This began a period of naming every song I wrote after the place which inspired it. Most of what I wrote still centred on a particular subject, so I now think it`s a bit unfair to name those songs after locations. I was in Sheridan, Montana and was thinking about a past relationship that had nothing to do with Sheridan, Montana. I wrote a few songs that I thought of while on a ferry between Horseshoe Bay in Vancouver and Departure Bay in Nanaimo, but again, those didn`t have much to do with being on the ocean.

I`ve written new songs, however, with the aforementioned titles, that do indeed entwine themselves between my thoughts and the locations in which they form. Departure Bay is now about leaving my two neices in Nanaimo after a visit.

I’m Growin’ Up

The past few months have been a revelation for me, and the more I think about the new progress my mind has made, the more I realize how enormous a role music, as well as other creative mediums, has played in the development of my perspectives both of myself and those around me. Last September I was sitting in a hot springs pool outside of Jasper, Alberta. It had been an extremely cold morning, so the water was soothing, despite the gloomy, grey sky. In an instant the sun screeched around the clouds, one ray at a time to bounce off the surface of the water and into our eyes, transforming everything into a blurry, bright, dreamlike place. The lady I was with started to hum a song by Good Old War called Just Looking For Shelter, and the moment remains fused in our memories. The sound was set off by the moment, the location, and the meaning in the lyrics was too coincidental for us to take the situation for granted.

Fast forward nearly a year and I realize I`ve been neglecting that side of me, the musical nature of my heart that is able to discover deeper meaning and the synchronicities that fuel my goals. The amount of music I already possess that describes perfectly the way I`m feeling is astounding; be it joyous, lonely, determined, jealous, or just straight up content, there`s something that describes my mood and usually the location I happen to inhabit.

Wait, what?

I`ve also realized that while music is (usually) a pure and honest form of communication, there are other mediums that can unite and explain the inner-workings of one`s motivations as well. The other major one for me is laughter. Obviously positive in nature, comedy can still be a cruel beast, intimidating and oppressive. Comedy has recently taught me a lot, and without trying to be too metaphorical, the union of comedy and music has taught me much about how important each are to one’s progression as a human being. Sometimes both take effort; naturally funny people who are dedicated to the importance of laughter still take the time to hone their craft and refuse to rest on their intrinsic talent, and people driven by music need to buckle down and work hard if they truly want to enjoy their medium through writing songs.

Music and laughter can cure. Tastefully making light of an argument or an intense emotional situation can take the edge off and help people to work past their struggles, while listening to the right song in the right place (depending on your individual definition of `right`), can help one to express thoughts and feelings that otherwise would remain tragically buried.

Thanks for reading my well thought-out and incredibly organized article. Anyone else have another medium they use to accomplish inspiration and self-discovery?