I'm new at this church musician thing. Oh I've played "special" music many times in my church as well as being a guest at other churches. But a few months ago I took over the duties as choir director and now I'm responsible for providing music every week during the offering when the choir is not singing. The organist provides all of the other music, but my modest contributions take some of the load off her.
This week in church the guitar solo that I had prepared was the Hyfrydol theme. But the organist played it as a prelude so I was left with a couple of choices. Do I play it anyway or something else? (It also occurred to me that I really need to communicate with her more often.) During the sermon I settled on playing something else, but what? Most of the songs I know I really should practice a few times first, but there was no time for that. So I thought of two songs that I knew I could play and was weighing the pros and cons of each when I got the notion that I could just improvise something instead.
I know this sounds risky at best and cocky at it's worse, but I've improvised background music before. In the past however I've just sort of played through some chord changes and made pretty sounds. This was different. I had a pretty clear vision of what I was going to do and how I was going to achieve it. So at the given time I grabbed my guitar and played. And just like the congregation, I was hearing this music for the first time too.
Creative folks know this feeling. Like you're plugging into something that already exists. The Greeks used to call it the Muse. Others might refer to it as divine inspiration. Whatever the name or source, I learned long ago that when that train comes through I need to get on board ride as long as I can. Or at least as long as I need.
I remember liking the music that I played, but when I tried to recreate it at home after church it was gone. What I played instead sounded more like a 1950's doo-wop song. And not a very good one at that.
It turns out that my Muse is a jerk! It will show up out of nowhere and give me an idea but if I don't write it down or record it immediately it will disappear faster than the morning mist. I seem to get some of my best ideas at the most inconvenient times. Like when I'm driving in heavy traffic or when I'm giving a lesson. I even had a brilliant idea once while I was giving a concert. I don't remember what it was but I remember thinking "That's brilliant!"
Other times I get an idea....which leads to another idea....which leads to another... And suddenly it's like trying to drink from a fire hose. All of those great ideas coming at me at once tend to cancel each other out and I'm left standing there wondering what the heck just happened. And if I am able to recall any of the ideas it's usually the dumb ones not the good ones. And never the great ones.
It's not just artistic folks that have a muse, of course. I'm sure many professions have their version. Researchers, teachers, and factory workers all get great ideas. The trick is getting people to recognize their Muse and acting upon it. I think the easiest way to teach a child about the Muse is to get them involved in the arts. A place where the Muse lives and influences. Even if it's a jerk like mine.