Do you like music? Listen to it a lot? What kind of music do you like to listen to?
“Praise ye the Lord. Sing unto the Lord a new song, and His praise in the congregation of saints” (Psalm 149:1, KJV).
I so enjoy church hymns, especially when accompanied by a full live orchestra. I’ve attended small and big churches with varying sizes of orchestras. Some smaller churches have ensembles if they don’t have enough musicians to recruit from their congregation. Regardless of whether it’s a small duo, trio, or quartet, or a half orchestra, live classical instruments add to the scope of church music, in my humble opinion.
I also love classical music, and enjoy attending concerts whenever I have the opportunity here in the metro area where I live, and also at my son’s college campus in years past when he attended music camps. God has made so many talented musicians who can play so well, with precision and musicality, and from such early ages.
Do you or someone in your family play a musical instrument?
My family is somewhat musical. Our son competed in high school piano competitions. In university now, he still plays the piano in ministry. My husband used to play the French Horn, and for years was in a church orchestra. I myself also played the piano for many years, until I went to college and was too busy studying. After graduating, I worked and had no time to learn new songs or spend time at the piano.
Since I have been unable to schedule time to practice on the piano in my real life, I decided to write what could have been into my novels. I combined my love of church hymns and classical music into a whole collection of books in my Seaside Chapel series. And yes, I make my musicians practice! Haha. I can because I invented my characters and they do whatever I tell them to do, including practicing and rehearsing for the next performance!
My Seaside Chapel series has an undertone of music, featuring a local area classical orchestra and a small church orchestra. While these two entities are a figment of my imagination, I chose a real life setting by the Atlantic Ocean. One of my most favorite beaches is St. Simon’s Island on the coast of Georgia, USA. Superimposing my imagined story world into a real world setting has been the most delightful and fun thing ever that this author can do.
I’m going to share some little tidbits from the first two novels in the Seaside Chapel series, but only from the perspective of incorporating music into these contemporary Christian small-town beach romances. I’ve written so much more than these into my novels, of course, but the purpose of this blog post, I shall only focus on certain musical instruments.
In Share with Me (Seaside Chapel Book 1), Ivan McMillan is a crossover violinist with a concert career in front of him until his grandfather dies and he goes home to St. Simon’s Island to take care of his elderly Grandma Yun.
For the next six years, Ivan busies himself teaching violin in a studio, playing first violin in the local symphony orchestra, and serving as a violinist at Seaside Chapel’s sanctuary orchestra. Every now and then he dreams of touring the world again, but those concert days are pretty much over for him.
Does anyone here play the violin? Feel free to comment on what violin you play. If you don’t play the violin but love the music, do comment on your favorite pieces played on the violin. How about the Flight of the Bumblebee? My character, Ivan, tries to play that too.
In the same novel but only playing the piano occasionally, billionaire heiress Brinley Brooks has inherited quite a collection of musical instruments from her now-deceased Grandpa Brooks. She keeps those expensive violins in a vault that is rarely opened. The violins are precious to her because they once belonged to her grandfather. She cannot imagine anyone playing them… Except maybe one particular musician…
Do you play the piano? Or have taken lessons when you were little? I started somewhat late in middle school, but my son started playing the piano when he was four years old (also when he gave his first concert performance at the music academy he was in).
Feel free to comment on your favorite piano music. In Share with Me, Brinley gets embarrassed a little bit when she tries to play a classical piece she hasn’t practiced, but she knows that her parents won’t mind her mistakes at the keyboard because they love her anyway.
“I will sing a new song unto Thee, O God: upon a psaltery and an instrument of ten strings will I sing praises unto Thee” (Psalm 144:9, KJV)).
The next novel in the series, Step with Me (Seaside Chapel Book 2), has more orchestral music. This time, I feature the pedal harp, another lovely string instrument found in orchestras. While my musician character, Emmeline O’Hanlon, can play several types of harps, including the Irish and lap harps, her preference is for the pedal harp. Her father taught her and her older brother to play the harp. The two siblings also compose music. Actually, her brother will get his own book, but that’s another story I will tell soon.
Do you play the harp or know someone who does? Which types of harps? Lap or pedal? I have never played either one. However, I do enjoy the music of the harp, and once attended a concert of ten harps, called a harp choir. It was amazing and unforgettable. I recall that the hymns they played sounded spectacular, like “the voice of many waters.”
Well, thank you for letting me share about the music I have incorporated into my Seaside Chapel series. I’ve published the first two novels in this series. The rest are coming soon. I take my time to write this series. I know I will not be able to cover every single classical musical instrument in the orchestra. So, if you play the contrabass clarinet… Well, hmm, yes, I do mention the contrabass clarinet in Share with Me, actually!
“Sing unto Him a new song; play skilfully with a loud noise” (Psalm 33:3, KJV).
One random commenter will be given one free ebook, either Share with Me (Seaside Chapel Book 1) or Step with Me (Seaside Chapel Book 2). The next novel, Sing with Me (Seaside Chapel Book 3), is coming soon. It’s available for preorder on Amazon.
Praising the Lord and singing unto Him new songs,
Jan Thompson
USA Today bestselling novelist Jan Thompson writes clean and wholesome multiethnic contemporary Christian romance with elements of women’s fiction, Christian romantic suspense with an air of mystery, and inspirational international thrillers with threads of sweet Christian romance. Join Jan's mailing list for her latest book news: JanThompson.com/newsletter
Hi Jan, thanks for sharing. I love music but am not talented at all musically. A lifetime ago, in high school, I used to play the flute but due to lack of practise and effort I’ve lost the breathing. My husband plays trombone and used to play in a jazz band in high school and a brass band through uni. He also plays the piano. Oldest son has started learning the trombone and youngest has just started learning guitar and drums. Both have plans to join the school band as they continue to learn.
We enjoy a variety of music, all depends on the mood.
Blessings:)
Thank you, Wemble, for your comments. Flute looks hard! I never tried to play it, but wow, it takes so much work to get it to sound beautiful, so I know it must be hard, especially when I watch live performances of flutists.
Back in elementary school, I played the recorder in our music class in school. It was hard too. I never knew whether I was playing it nicely or terribly LOL. But then we played in a group, so at least we kids all had fun together HAHA!
That’s cool that your husband plays brass. My husband was also in a brass band in high school. In college he didn’t go back to music. Sounds like your sons are musical too! That’s wonderful!
Thank you for stopping by! Have a blessed day in the Lord!
Hi Jan! Thanks for sharing. I enjoy all kinds of music. I am not extremely musical, but learned to play the clarinet. Even played in a church orchestra. My brother played violin and played in our community symphony. My daughter-in-law’s father is very musical. He plays piano, sax and the harp. I believe it is a petal harp, which he built himself and played at our son’s wedding. Your Sea Side Chapel series sounds fascinating. In our Lake Michigan resort town we have many summer concerts by the lake – band concerts on Friday nights and Sundays and symphony concert for the Fourth of July. I enjoy listening to Joshua Bell’s violin music and was surprised that he takes his million dollar violin on the NYC subway. Best wishes.
What a lovely post, Jan! I am severely musically challenged and cannot even clap in time with a song…lol! But I do love to listen to music, I have the AirOne radio station on in my car and at my office all day long. I will sing out loud when no one is around to be offended, hahaha!
Hello Paula Marie! Thank you. Music appreciation is a beautiful thing, so I’m glad you like to listen to music. I can’t sing well, so most of the time, I call myself the “cheering section.” How about we sit together! I rarely clap with a song because that’s multitasking LOL. IDK how people can clap hands, tap feet, sing, nod, have conversation, and listen at the same time. I’ve seen some super talented people do that but it’s not me.
Thanks again for your comment!
Thank you, Renata! That’s cool that you play the clarinet. Such a musical family there!
Joshua Bell played fabulous violin music. He was in town recently but I didn’t have time to go hear his play. I do have some his music. That’s something, isn’t it, that he takes his Strad on the subway. Well, Yo Yo Ma once left his cello in a taxi! Good thing the taxi driver was honest and returned it.
Thanks again for your comment!
I love music although my husband would disagree. He would listen to music 24/7 if it were up to him. While I enjoy music, I also enjoy the sound of silence. I’m not musically talented in the least. I took piano lessons in my 30’s because it had been a lifelong dream of mine to play. I found I wasn’t particularly gifted and my arms began to hurt from practicing. So after a couple of years I stopped the lessons. I also love to sing but it is a joyful noise with the emphasis on noise. I do love most kinds of music but not rap and my days of listening to hard rock are way in the past. The instruments I most enjoy are piano and harp.
Thank you, Sherri! I do like the sound of silence too. In fact, I can only write in silence. I can’t write when there’s music on or when the lawn mower or TV is happening nearby.
I do like the piano and harp too! Piano is featured in almost every novel in my Seaside Chapel series. The harp is featured in Book 2 (Step with Me). Other musical instruments will have their turns…
Thank you for stopping by!
I’m a life long lover of music and like you, I feel music is an important part of worship. The Spirit often speaks to me through song lyrics. Music has been a part of me my whole life. As a child I played the flute, bassoon and baritone saxophone in various bands. I started taking guitar lessons in the 6th grade and played regularly for 15 years. Late in high school I discovered my singing voice and started singing in chours and choruses. I also started doing occasional solos at church and sang in at least a dozen friends’ weddings!!
Hello Laurie! Wow. You are talented indeed, being able to play so many instruments and also sing! I can barely play the piano these days, and poorly at that. (Lack of practice LOL.)
I do believe that God created music to begin with. If we don’t praise the Lord, the rocks will. And they found sand out there in the desert somewhere that “sing” in the key of G. It’s amazing.
I am glad that there are talented vocalists who choose to serve in ministry by singing for the Lord.
Thank you again for your comments!
I love music. I played the violin in grade school and was even concertmistress in the all grade school orchestra. But I dropped it when I went to Jr. High. It was too much. I did take a choir class and sang in my Church choir in highschool. I also played piano along with my kids when they took lessons. But am not accomplished at all. I have a friend who has an Irish harp and plays beautifully! I listen to all kinds of music.
Thank you, Paula! I also listen to many types of musical instruments. The Irish harp is pretty too! Yes, the violin is probably one of the most difficult instruments to learn to play at all. There is so much work involved to get the sounds just right.
No one is playing the piano in our house right now since my son went off to college. But I kept the piano, just in case. I do remember the days of counting beats and helping my son practice the piano. Good memories!
Thank you for stopping by!
I love music! I consider music a special language between me and the Holy Spirit. 😊
I took piano lessons for about 4 1/2 years and played the keyboard in our very small pep band. But when I went to college, the practice rooms were all reserved for music majors, so I dropped my hymn-playing class, which really was a little too hard for me anyway, and I stopped practising.
My sister played the trombone in pep band with me, and then sometime afterwards began learning guitar. My husband took classical guitar in college but doesn’t play anymore.
As to types of music, I grew up listening to classic Country and Oldies. Every once in a great while, I’ll get nostalgic for these. But usually I listen to contemporary Christian. I also will listen to classical, instrumental movie soundtracks, or nature instrumental music while writing or editing.
Thank you, Lila! I do like classical music too! They are amazingly composed, for sure.
That’s nice that you have a musical family too. My son also plays hymns. It takes a lot of work to practice!
Thank you for stopping by!
Such a beautiful post <3
I've always wanted to play piano but never had an opportunity :( My oldest son and daughter never finished learning. But our family sings in worship group and music is part of our lives!
Blessings!
Thank you, Natalya! I’m glad you enjoyed the blog post today.
That’s beautiful that your family sings together. Most of us here don’t sing (out there in front of people) so we just sing in the service (congregational singing). I’m glad for that. I get very nervous when the music pastor says it’s time for the women only to sing a capella! :-)
Thank you for stopping by!
I love music and praise and worship. When I was younger I played guitar and piano. My oldest played double bass in high school and college. Try putting a six foot instrument in a van with five people! Or I had to remind my daughter to pick up her bass lying in the middle of a townhouse living room with lots of people everywhere in the house. We enjoyed her orchestral concerts. I miss them. By the time they hit college they’re actually good.
Thank you, Diana! I have never tried to learn to play the guitar. I do like the pretty string music it produces, though. LOL that’s funny about the double bass! How did you manage? It’s like you might need a 16-passenger van just to have room for the instruments!
Thank you for stopping by!
I love music! I don’t play any instruments, though. One of my nephews plays bass, though. He started in elementary, and went to college on a partial scholarship. He played in the orchestra and the jazz band. I’d love to be able to play the steel guitar, though!! I have no wrist movement in my right hand, so I’m not sure I’d be able to play much of anything! I love listening to hymns, country, bluegrass, and variations of all three! Also, classic rock!
Thank you, Trudy, for stopping by. That’s amazing that your nephew is in the college orchestra. It’s quite competitive, I hear. College musicians are so much more committed than high school (when they can test different instruments and maybe decide not to play anymore). Once in college, it gets serious!
I love to listen to hymns too! I have heard steel guitar music, but I have never played it myself.
Thank you for your comments!
I love listening to music but I have no musical talent to play.
Thank you, Lelia, for your comments! I think music appreciation is an art too. Glad you like to listen to music. These days, that’s about all the time I have for. I don’t have time to practice the piano or learn a new instrument or work on my vocals. But I’m glad for the beautiful music we can listen to!
Thank you for stopping by!