Drumming for Fun and Profit

I have been given several opportunities to play around the area this spring. In February I performed "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" with the Central Park Players in Grand Haven. Then, after that, I played "Bye, Bye Birdie" with the Mona Shores Allegros. Currently I'm in rehearsals for performances of "The Wizard of Oz" with Muskegon Civic Theatre.

One of the things I enjoy about being able to play musicals is the interaction that happens not only within the pit orchestra but also between the orchestra and the singers/actors on stage. We in the pit are the accompaniast, and we are charged with the task of following the whims of the singers, no matter where they may take us. This means that every show is different, no matter what is on the printed page. Of course, we are still expected to perform in a manner that is faithful to the notes in front of us, and so we must strike a balance between being literally accurate and, simultaneously, flexible enough to serve the desires of the performers on stage.

I find that I also like getting paid for playing, but that's another thought.

I am finding that my Trinitarian theology is demanding similar things of me. I have the notes in front of me. I can open the Word and see what I am supposed to do. But then there is that whole "inspired imagination" (thank you, Dick Thompson)that is led by the Spirit to live out those notes in a way that is, well, flexible. For me, that ambiguity is welcome. I like improv. For many of my friends, though, this can be problematic, for they seem more interested in rigidity than flexibility.

The winds of the Spirit are still blowing; and they will blow where they blow.