Sometimes one has little moments in life where the simple beauty of something stands out or something happens that makes you reframe an event in a much better and nicer way. These are the small and humble pearls that life can offer us if we choose to breathe and open ourselves to a less pressured, less caustic and more light filled way of seeing life.
It is coming to the end of a summer term and for me as a music teacher it marks the turning of another years cycle of working and trying and becoming. Soon, the big summer break will open up a time where I focus more on family, my garden and visiting extended family. It provides a moment of stepping back from my outward work activities. It allows a summer timelessness to slip in and rejuvenate me for the cycle of trying and teaching and becoming. This is also true of the external efforting of songwriting.
I have had two beautiful humble pearl moments lately; one with my teaching and one with my songwriting.
I teach a little girl who has multiple needs and is a beautiful delicate flower of a girl, who is only just with us on this planet. Amongst some of her needs she is sight impaired. This little girl can not run and play and learn or even go to school all day like other children. In her earlier years her “friends” were the Walt Disney musicals that she would have on for entertainment. Here, she discovered her love of singing and making up songs. I started to teach her during lockdown, at first online and eventually in person. Her soul comes alive when she sings and together we have created a very special music learning journey just for her, making the learning fit her own very unique needs…..and a beautiful angel voice emerged. Finally she was ready to be able to join a choir with other little girls and she invited me, alongside her parents, to their first concert. The enormous beam on her face and the confidence with which she took part was one of the best presents I have ever had.
For me, this is one of the best pearls in my path recently. My music teaching is generally fairly invisible as I am not in mainstream schools and I teach from home. It is barely a living but I do my best with it. Such a moment like this fills me with joy as it shows me in a people and real way what music can do for a person/student. There is healing, joy, growth, connection and a legacy that fuels a developing life. This little girl now has an emerging talent that she can see herself reflected back from, with pride, confidence and steadiness. Sadly, she is moving out of the area but I have offered to do special lessons for a day now and then and go down by train. She is inspired to try songwriting and has a capacity beyond her age to create lovely melodies. She is a growing pearl…..
The other Pearl, was one that could have been an annoyance but I chose to see it differently! A man on Instagram asked me if I would write a song for his daughter’s seventh birthday. He asked me to include her name and her love of mermaids and her puppy Max. He said he needed it in a weeks time and that he would pay me $300 for it. Now, I have to this date not yet earned any money from my songwriting so I was delighted at this serendipitous opportunity. I duly set forth. I have just begun composing with the piano so I decided to use the chord sequence my teacher had given me for this song. The song I wrote is pure Disney “Schmultz” but actually has a real hook to it and is developmentally appropriate for a seven year old who loves mermaids and puppies! I decided to write it as if her dad was singing it to her! It has a feeling of the German folk song Adelveiss about it.
Here is the song:
Mermaid Girl
Evelyn, Evelyn
Mermaid girl from water realms of light.
Daddy’s star that shines all night
On this birthday night
O my Evelyn,
O my Evelyn
O my Evelyn.
Chorus:
Roll and tumble all day
With Maxi by your side
“Come on Evie, let’s go and play
Together we will hide,
Let’s go and play
Let’s go and play.”
V2
Daughter, daughter
May your dreams eternal shine so bright
Live your life with all your might.
Each and every night.
O my Evelyn
My wish for my girl.
O my Evelyn.
The chords I used were: C major, F major, F minor, G major, A minor, D minor. It is largely set in C major. The verses are in 6/8 timing and are lilting like a lullaby. There is a time change to something more upbeat in the chorus . It is definitely meant to have loads of melting harmonies on the “O my Evelyn ” bits. It is really rather catchy and also very sentimental! The song is a far cry from my “retro rapunzel” song writing or my medaeveilly anthemic “do gooder” songs!
Unfortunately and somewhat thankfully before I got to home recording it I realised that it was a scam that I had totally fallen for! I was glad that the man had not got my bank details and I was cross with myself for being such a naieve twit ( I think Naievity may just be my middle name). However, it did show me I can write a song to a commision in a short period of time that is professional and of good quality and standard.
In that sense, t is a small pearl of achievement – even if it is tinged with the sense of my being a bit silly to fall for an online scam. However, I would still rather look at the glass as being half full rather than half empty and see the good and the beautiful rather than be jaundiced and suspicious about life…..
I wonder what pearls of experience the summer will bring….only time will tell.
Abi's World of Music 