Well, there's not a whole lot new to report.
Our musical group has begun to hold services on Sunday morning at 2 local Nursing homes, so that's what I've been doing for church lately. It's a good experience. It is great to know that not only am I still getting fed spiritually, but I am helping bless people with an opportunity they don't have otherwise. It's also a good exposure to up-close, hands-on ministry.
The blessings flow both ways, and God definitely uses older people to bless younger people.
Michael told us in practice this past week that we need to keep our calendars clear for the next 2-3 months and not plan any big trips or anything like that. He was unable to specify any details at this point, but he did say that what was in the works would make our trip to Nashville look like a lawn party in comparison.
[business details edited]
These are just my immediate guesses at what the event may be, and obviously I have no experience with anything like this, so I could be totally wrong. It is fun to think about and wait to see what is coming.
We might know the details by the 1st of the year.
I put up my Christmas tree today, and listened to Christmas Music all the while.
I thoroughly enjoy the Holiday season!
Tonight I went to the St. Charles Family Arena to a Missouri River Otter hockey game. It was Christian Family Night, so our church had quite a few people there, including our Singles Sunday School group. Big deal, I'm sure you're thinking.
Yep. You see, I was asked to sing the National Anthem. I sang the Anthem two years ago for Christian Family Night at the River City Rascals baseball game. So I was asked 2 days ago to sing it again. Naturally, I accepted.
The announcer came on and instructed everyone to stand and remove their caps, and then introduced me. I waited 3 seconds for eveyone to get settled, then I began. (Now I wasn't sure how long the delay might be, or what the echo might sound like, so i was ready for almost anything.) Almost...
I got through the first phrase and realized that I didn't hear myself at all, let alone an echo. So I stopped, and waited 5 seconds to start again. Again I reached the beginning of the second phrase and figured I had better stop before going any further. I checked the microphone to make sure there was a kill switch on it (there wasn't), and I checked to verify that the cord was securely attached (it was).
At this point, the players from the visiting team (who were only 15 feet away), and the fans immediately next to me began casting glares my way. I could tell by the expressions on their faces that they were thinking that either I was scared silent or that I had forgotten the words. I stepped back for a few seconds more, then started again. This time, right after the word "can" the mic turned on. The delay was very short (much shorter than at the ballpark) and I think they had me cranked in the system (because I thought it sounded loud). The rest of the song was pretty uneventful, and I hit the notes without much difficulty at the end.
It's always fun to see and hear people and their reaction to me when I sing anywhere. I suppose it's due to the way I look that people assume that if I do any singing at all, it is probably screaming heavy metal. So people always sound suprised and shocked that I sounded fairly decent. It's a fun moment to catch people in.
The National Anthem is a tricky song to pull off. If you start just a little too low, you will never hit the low notes a few phrases in. If you start a bit too high, you'll never hit the ending. And since both times I've sung it have been a capella, my beginning is critical. The first time I started a note too low, but made it through. Tonight I started perhaps a half step too low, but that's okay. I'd rather err on the low end than the high end. Nobody wants to hear my straining and screaming for those notes.
Another good time singing in front of a couple thousand people...
Yep. You see, I was asked to sing the National Anthem. I sang the Anthem two years ago for Christian Family Night at the River City Rascals baseball game. So I was asked 2 days ago to sing it again. Naturally, I accepted.
The announcer came on and instructed everyone to stand and remove their caps, and then introduced me. I waited 3 seconds for eveyone to get settled, then I began. (Now I wasn't sure how long the delay might be, or what the echo might sound like, so i was ready for almost anything.) Almost...
I got through the first phrase and realized that I didn't hear myself at all, let alone an echo. So I stopped, and waited 5 seconds to start again. Again I reached the beginning of the second phrase and figured I had better stop before going any further. I checked the microphone to make sure there was a kill switch on it (there wasn't), and I checked to verify that the cord was securely attached (it was).
At this point, the players from the visiting team (who were only 15 feet away), and the fans immediately next to me began casting glares my way. I could tell by the expressions on their faces that they were thinking that either I was scared silent or that I had forgotten the words. I stepped back for a few seconds more, then started again. This time, right after the word "can" the mic turned on. The delay was very short (much shorter than at the ballpark) and I think they had me cranked in the system (because I thought it sounded loud). The rest of the song was pretty uneventful, and I hit the notes without much difficulty at the end.
It's always fun to see and hear people and their reaction to me when I sing anywhere. I suppose it's due to the way I look that people assume that if I do any singing at all, it is probably screaming heavy metal. So people always sound suprised and shocked that I sounded fairly decent. It's a fun moment to catch people in.
The National Anthem is a tricky song to pull off. If you start just a little too low, you will never hit the low notes a few phrases in. If you start a bit too high, you'll never hit the ending. And since both times I've sung it have been a capella, my beginning is critical. The first time I started a note too low, but made it through. Tonight I started perhaps a half step too low, but that's okay. I'd rather err on the low end than the high end. Nobody wants to hear my straining and screaming for those notes.
Another good time singing in front of a couple thousand people...
Our musical group felt like we needed to go back down to Cairo, IL to visit and minister to our friends down at the Promise Land Mission. So we gathered together some clothes and met this morning at Michael's house to carpool down.
The awesome thing about this trip is that Lisa was able to go with us. I was super-excited about this fact (After all, she had never seen the musical before - she had only heard me sing my song and Michael sing "Listen to the Rain" in person. She has heard most of it on the CD I gave her, but it pales in comparison to a live performance. She also pointed out the fact that she had learned that Cairo was the site of one of the more vicious race riots in the United States.
So Amanda joined Lisa and I in the car and we took the 3 hour road trip down to Cairo. We ate at the Hong Kong Chinese restaurant in downtown Cairo (this is becoming a tradition of sorts - plus it's all-can-eat buffet). We met up with pastor Dewayne and made our way a couple of blocks to the mission.
We placed the sacks of clothing out on the picnic tables for the people to search through after the service. It wasn't near as cold this time as it was the last time I went down to the mission, so they didn't have the three space heaters cranked - which made me very happy.
By the time we were ready to start singing, Lisa had bonded pretty well with Esther Ruth (Ruth's daughter) and they sat with each other. We sang through the first act, and everyone did a fantastic job. My song went really well. I really enjoy being right there with the people and on the same level with them.
After the sermon we had communion, which for these people was a very rare event. In fact, I don't know if some of these people had ever had the opportunity to take communion. It was a very sweet time of congregational singing and prayer.
We went back up and finished the evening with the latter portion of act two. By the time we were finished the room was quite warm and I was pretty well spent. We left kind of quickly in order to get back at a decent hour, but everyone seemed genuinely appreciative and thankful. It's a nice little place to go to recharge and share all at the same time. Lisa and I drove home by ourselves, which proved to be a period of good reflection and discussion.
The push is on to get all of our voices on the CD. I almost had the opportunity to go down to Nashville this week to record my song, but that fell through at the last minute. My turn should be coming soon. We'll drive down, record for a day or two and drive back. Maybe then I'll have a clip of my song (with me singing) that I can post on this site for you all to hear.
It's quite an exciting time right now...
The awesome thing about this trip is that Lisa was able to go with us. I was super-excited about this fact (After all, she had never seen the musical before - she had only heard me sing my song and Michael sing "Listen to the Rain" in person. She has heard most of it on the CD I gave her, but it pales in comparison to a live performance. She also pointed out the fact that she had learned that Cairo was the site of one of the more vicious race riots in the United States.
So Amanda joined Lisa and I in the car and we took the 3 hour road trip down to Cairo. We ate at the Hong Kong Chinese restaurant in downtown Cairo (this is becoming a tradition of sorts - plus it's all-can-eat buffet). We met up with pastor Dewayne and made our way a couple of blocks to the mission.
We placed the sacks of clothing out on the picnic tables for the people to search through after the service. It wasn't near as cold this time as it was the last time I went down to the mission, so they didn't have the three space heaters cranked - which made me very happy.
By the time we were ready to start singing, Lisa had bonded pretty well with Esther Ruth (Ruth's daughter) and they sat with each other. We sang through the first act, and everyone did a fantastic job. My song went really well. I really enjoy being right there with the people and on the same level with them.
After the sermon we had communion, which for these people was a very rare event. In fact, I don't know if some of these people had ever had the opportunity to take communion. It was a very sweet time of congregational singing and prayer.
We went back up and finished the evening with the latter portion of act two. By the time we were finished the room was quite warm and I was pretty well spent. We left kind of quickly in order to get back at a decent hour, but everyone seemed genuinely appreciative and thankful. It's a nice little place to go to recharge and share all at the same time. Lisa and I drove home by ourselves, which proved to be a period of good reflection and discussion.
The push is on to get all of our voices on the CD. I almost had the opportunity to go down to Nashville this week to record my song, but that fell through at the last minute. My turn should be coming soon. We'll drive down, record for a day or two and drive back. Maybe then I'll have a clip of my song (with me singing) that I can post on this site for you all to hear.
It's quite an exciting time right now...
Practice was not our typical barrage of music and endurance test this week. Michael spent most of practice discussing where he and Robert feel God is leading our group in the coming months. They both feel as if we need to get out and do more ministering to the people of the area, and not just practice on Fridays. We are looking for places that want us to come share this message in music, and are willing to go anywhere that might be. We are following up with a couple of prisons to fill out the necessary paperwork to allow us to share in that setting, and we are currently planning on going back down to Cairo, IL to sing at the mission church (we have gone down twice now, once to perform and once mainly to deliver clothing).
We are hoping to get to perform at various churches, nursing homes, hospitals, children's homes and anywhere else we may be given the opportunity. So, if you know of a place that would like to have our group come sing, please e-mail me and we will work out the details.
We are hoping to get to perform at various churches, nursing homes, hospitals, children's homes and anywhere else we may be given the opportunity. So, if you know of a place that would like to have our group come sing, please e-mail me and we will work out the details.
I'm in the process of attempting to "backblog" everything that happened in Nashville. So far I have one day completed, and it is quite lengthy. I will not post it though, until the whole trip is ready to be read about (seems fair to me - after all, I wouldn't want to leave you all hanging for the second part)
By the way, I like the definition of "Backblog" which I just came across in this blog:
Backblog: Any blog entry which tries to recapture a series of events just on the verge of mental overripeness, often resulting in a long boring entry which no one really ever reads.
Yeah, I think that is a good summary word for a lot of what I do on this site.
By the way, I like the definition of "Backblog" which I just came across in this blog:
Backblog: Any blog entry which tries to recapture a series of events just on the verge of mental overripeness, often resulting in a long boring entry which no one really ever reads.
Yeah, I think that is a good summary word for a lot of what I do on this site.
At practice tonight, we worked on the new song "A Patch of Blue", which sounds like something from a Bing Crosby musical. It has some really incredibly smooth harmonies, builds up to a massive wall of sound, then immediately breaks back to the tender harmonies that run through the chorus. I like the way this song moves and sounds a lot - it's definately a new type of song for the musical. We then had the newer members go over their songs, which sound pretty good, considering the short amount of time they have been involved with this adventure.
Michael then proceeded to pull out the "memo" that Deke wrote to BMI regarding this endeavor. (Explanatory note: When trying to land a record deal for a musical, it is standard procedure for the production company(Deke) to provide a basic 2 or 3 paragraph memo stating its intent to fully back/fund the jusical for a certain period of time. This allows the record company (BMI) to know that it's product (the CD) will be supported and actively promoted, thus making it more inviting of a proposition for the record company.(
Well, Deke's "memo" ended up being a full 5 pages in length, so I guess that makes it a letter.
In it, Deke proceeded to list some of his various accomplishments and accolades, in order to prove his status in the industry and the fact that he is successful and that he knows what a good product is. He then proceeded to explain how his company (Sanctuary Productions) is very successful in promoting various products around the world. He explained the status of the company and how it continues to expand it's influence not only in the radio/music market, but also in the publishing, multimedia, movie and theatrical realms as well. Then he moved into explaining why he thinks this musical is a good business endeavor, and how he feels it can be a very successful investment.
He spoke of various broad strategies that could be pursued in marketing and promoting the "Isle of Dreams", and explained how he hoped the synergy between Santuary and BMI could accomplish these things. He then stated exactly how Sanctuary is planning on promoting this musical on its own, with specific market plans and events that will be scheduled in various locales around the United States as well as the world. He also stated that our group will be going over to Iraq to sing for the troops.
Throughout the letter, he made mention of the "magnificent cast", the "incredibly talented group of performers", "these amazing singers" and other incredibly humbling descriptions of our group. He basically stated in more than one portion of the letter how our group would be specifically involved in what he was talking about. He even proceeded to mention several of the castmembers by name, and how they could be promoted into being "actual stars" of their own right. He also stated that this musical does not need "stars" or famous people to promote it. He believes the music and the message presented is more than enough to make people love the musical and want to hear it/see it again.
It was an amazing time to listen to these words being read to us. Words which were written by a man of amazing talent and intelligence, on the other side of an ocean, not obligated to write such acclaims or reviews of us at all. And yet he felt compelled to include us in his letter. He included us as part of the reason why BMI should be involved with this musical.
We have been honored in the highest way, by one of the most highly respected men in the music industry. People all around the globe know who this man is by name only, and we have had the opportunity to meet him, sing for him, spend time with him, and even speak with him openly regarding many various things.
That was all we did at practice tonight, as if that wasn't enough.
We are continually being amazed by how God is moving through other people in order to promote His message.
Who are we to deserve such statements of praise? What did we do to deserve such treatment and favor from God?
Well, as a group we have remained faithful to Him. We have always sought to promote Christ, and nothing less. We have held to our convictions, and have unashamedly promoted the Gospel everywhere we have gone. Individually, we have drawn closer to God and continually strive to walk in His ways.
God blesses us in spite of ourselves, and He rewards us because He loves us. Awesome!
Michael then proceeded to pull out the "memo" that Deke wrote to BMI regarding this endeavor. (Explanatory note: When trying to land a record deal for a musical, it is standard procedure for the production company(Deke) to provide a basic 2 or 3 paragraph memo stating its intent to fully back/fund the jusical for a certain period of time. This allows the record company (BMI) to know that it's product (the CD) will be supported and actively promoted, thus making it more inviting of a proposition for the record company.(
Well, Deke's "memo" ended up being a full 5 pages in length, so I guess that makes it a letter.
In it, Deke proceeded to list some of his various accomplishments and accolades, in order to prove his status in the industry and the fact that he is successful and that he knows what a good product is. He then proceeded to explain how his company (Sanctuary Productions) is very successful in promoting various products around the world. He explained the status of the company and how it continues to expand it's influence not only in the radio/music market, but also in the publishing, multimedia, movie and theatrical realms as well. Then he moved into explaining why he thinks this musical is a good business endeavor, and how he feels it can be a very successful investment.
He spoke of various broad strategies that could be pursued in marketing and promoting the "Isle of Dreams", and explained how he hoped the synergy between Santuary and BMI could accomplish these things. He then stated exactly how Sanctuary is planning on promoting this musical on its own, with specific market plans and events that will be scheduled in various locales around the United States as well as the world. He also stated that our group will be going over to Iraq to sing for the troops.
Throughout the letter, he made mention of the "magnificent cast", the "incredibly talented group of performers", "these amazing singers" and other incredibly humbling descriptions of our group. He basically stated in more than one portion of the letter how our group would be specifically involved in what he was talking about. He even proceeded to mention several of the castmembers by name, and how they could be promoted into being "actual stars" of their own right. He also stated that this musical does not need "stars" or famous people to promote it. He believes the music and the message presented is more than enough to make people love the musical and want to hear it/see it again.
It was an amazing time to listen to these words being read to us. Words which were written by a man of amazing talent and intelligence, on the other side of an ocean, not obligated to write such acclaims or reviews of us at all. And yet he felt compelled to include us in his letter. He included us as part of the reason why BMI should be involved with this musical.
We have been honored in the highest way, by one of the most highly respected men in the music industry. People all around the globe know who this man is by name only, and we have had the opportunity to meet him, sing for him, spend time with him, and even speak with him openly regarding many various things.
That was all we did at practice tonight, as if that wasn't enough.
We are continually being amazed by how God is moving through other people in order to promote His message.
Who are we to deserve such statements of praise? What did we do to deserve such treatment and favor from God?
Well, as a group we have remained faithful to Him. We have always sought to promote Christ, and nothing less. We have held to our convictions, and have unashamedly promoted the Gospel everywhere we have gone. Individually, we have drawn closer to God and continually strive to walk in His ways.
God blesses us in spite of ourselves, and He rewards us because He loves us. Awesome!
For those of you who may not have heard, or just simply aren't aware of it...
I have a girlfriend! Yep, that's right. Me. With a girl. With me...
I'm not posting much here about her yet, because I haven't asked her if it would be okay. Maybe eventually I'll release some of the pictures I have, but not yet. I have to respect her privacy until she tells me it's okay. And if that doesn't happen, then you will all be missing out on some really cool stuff...
I have a girlfriend! Yep, that's right. Me. With a girl. With me...
I'm not posting much here about her yet, because I haven't asked her if it would be okay. Maybe eventually I'll release some of the pictures I have, but not yet. I have to respect her privacy until she tells me it's okay. And if that doesn't happen, then you will all be missing out on some really cool stuff...
Day two started with some great excitement for me in my suite. I got up at 7:30 so that I wouldn’t have to rush to meet everyone down in the lobby at 9. I climbed into the shower with every intention of taking a long shower. When I got in and realized that this shower was equipped with a 5 –way massager head, I changed my plan and took a seriously long hot shower instead.
Well, I decide I had been in the shower for long enough and I didn't want to have to rush after taking such a relaxing shower, so I shut off the water and that's when I heard the phone ringing. I panicked. "Maybe it's already 9, and that's Michael and I'm in trouble!" So I bolted out of the bathroom and grabbed the phone as I was wrapping a towel around me.
"Hello!?!??"
"Good morning sir. I'm from hotel maintenance and there is a leak in 415 and we think it may be coming from your room."
"Okay..."
"I'll be at your door in a minute."
"Okay."
Click
Nock, nock, nock...
A minute?! I had barely taken my hand off the receiver. Well, the clock by the bed said it was only 8:20, so I decided I wasn't going to run around to try and get dressed for whoever happened to be on the other side of my door. So I walked over and opened it for the maintenance man.
He walked in and explianed that evidently the recessed light fixture that is directly above the toilet in Room 415 decided it didn't want to be a plain old light source this morning. It had decided at some point to also become a small verion of Niagara Falls and pour gallons of water all over the closed toilet seat and bathroom. He asked me if I had seen any leaks or had any trouble with the water.
Is this guy blind?
Here I am dripping wet, wrapped in a towel, and he's asking me if I've had any trouble with my water.
"No sir. No trouble at all. In fact, I just got out of the shower when I answered your call on the phone."
"Well, that was good timing then, wasn't it?"
"Yep."
He checked the bathroom, which was completely dry (except for the bathtub/shower which was quite wet, and the puddle on the floor where I had launched myself out of the shower to grab the phone. With nothing apparrently wrong in my corner of the world, this poor man was off to pester some other hotel guest about the mysterious source of the water, which was apparently still streaming from the recently converted waterfall/light socket.
What a way to start my day! I couldn't help but smile and laugh about it...
We made our way to The Castle recordnign studio and set up the stage area. We made use of some elegant candle stands and incorporated more candles behind us. It helped soften the atmosphere and made it a more relaxed place to be. We then rehearsed through the show 2 complete times (without doing much singing at all - we were focussing on our movements.)
We ended up not having as much time as we like to dress before a performance, but we all rushed about and got ready in time to start on time. The performance went very nicely, and everyone sounded great.
The immediate response right after the show was very positive. We made our way into the side room where we performed some "acoustic" numbers, with Michael playing them on the baby grand piano. It was a neat way to wrap up a flawless evening. We were able to show these industry people that we are very professional and able to perform in less than ideal places. Then to follow that up with being very down-to-earth idividuals who can sing without the aid of all the electronic gizmos and still sound great, I think it was the perfect way to display our talents and our passion for the message in the music.
What an amazing trip!
Well, I decide I had been in the shower for long enough and I didn't want to have to rush after taking such a relaxing shower, so I shut off the water and that's when I heard the phone ringing. I panicked. "Maybe it's already 9, and that's Michael and I'm in trouble!" So I bolted out of the bathroom and grabbed the phone as I was wrapping a towel around me.
"Hello!?!??"
"Good morning sir. I'm from hotel maintenance and there is a leak in 415 and we think it may be coming from your room."
"Okay..."
"I'll be at your door in a minute."
"Okay."
Click
Nock, nock, nock...
A minute?! I had barely taken my hand off the receiver. Well, the clock by the bed said it was only 8:20, so I decided I wasn't going to run around to try and get dressed for whoever happened to be on the other side of my door. So I walked over and opened it for the maintenance man.
He walked in and explianed that evidently the recessed light fixture that is directly above the toilet in Room 415 decided it didn't want to be a plain old light source this morning. It had decided at some point to also become a small verion of Niagara Falls and pour gallons of water all over the closed toilet seat and bathroom. He asked me if I had seen any leaks or had any trouble with the water.
Is this guy blind?
Here I am dripping wet, wrapped in a towel, and he's asking me if I've had any trouble with my water.
"No sir. No trouble at all. In fact, I just got out of the shower when I answered your call on the phone."
"Well, that was good timing then, wasn't it?"
"Yep."
He checked the bathroom, which was completely dry (except for the bathtub/shower which was quite wet, and the puddle on the floor where I had launched myself out of the shower to grab the phone. With nothing apparrently wrong in my corner of the world, this poor man was off to pester some other hotel guest about the mysterious source of the water, which was apparently still streaming from the recently converted waterfall/light socket.
What a way to start my day! I couldn't help but smile and laugh about it...
We made our way to The Castle recordnign studio and set up the stage area. We made use of some elegant candle stands and incorporated more candles behind us. It helped soften the atmosphere and made it a more relaxed place to be. We then rehearsed through the show 2 complete times (without doing much singing at all - we were focussing on our movements.)
We ended up not having as much time as we like to dress before a performance, but we all rushed about and got ready in time to start on time. The performance went very nicely, and everyone sounded great.
The immediate response right after the show was very positive. We made our way into the side room where we performed some "acoustic" numbers, with Michael playing them on the baby grand piano. It was a neat way to wrap up a flawless evening. We were able to show these industry people that we are very professional and able to perform in less than ideal places. Then to follow that up with being very down-to-earth idividuals who can sing without the aid of all the electronic gizmos and still sound great, I think it was the perfect way to display our talents and our passion for the message in the music.
What an amazing trip!
Well, I tried to go to bed last night around 9pm. I was feeling a bit tired, so I figure that this way I would get almost 6 hours of sleep prior to getting up to drive into downtown St. Louis. So I crawled into bed, tossed and turned for a while, laid on my back for a while and then finally got up for a glass of water around midnight. Upon laying back down, I was still restless for a bit, but fell asleep finally sometime around12:30am.
Well, my alarm went off at 3:03am, and I very quickly got out of bed – lest I fall back asleep. I took a quick shower and then dressed in the clothes that I would wear for the trip down in the van, as well as sing for Deke Arlon in. Naturally, these clothes aren’t the most comfortable to try and sleep in or ride for any great length of time in a car in, but it was required, so I threw them on.
The drive to downtown was smooth with no traffic, and thankfully, no construction on I-70. I arrived at Michael’s around 3:45am. Everyone else in our group is used to getting up early (almost everyone is at work by 5:30am), but that is not the case for me. I was tired (lack of sleep, extreme early wake up time), but everyone else was pretty well up and chatty. Needless to say, we were all very excited. We gathered in the living room and prayed, then loaded into the van and proceeded on our way to Nashville.
My hope was to fall asleep early into the trip, and sleep up until we stopped for breakfast. Well, we were all excited, so there was a lot of talking at the beginning of the trip. This meant that I was not able to fall asleep as I had hoped, and I actually didn’t fall asleep until about 30 minutes before we stopped. And it was a restless sleep, so it wasn’t really worth anything. Breakfast at Cracker Barrel took quite a while, but it was good.
Around noon we pulled up to Robert’s house, which is northeast of Nashville in Hendersonville. It was a nice place, with a finished basement, which housed his music studio and lounge room. We quickly began to setup in the lounge room for our performance for Deke, which would take place later in the evening.
By 12:30, we were beginning to do some sound checks and actually started rehearsing a bit before Deke arrived. Lisa Bevill (Christian music artist) arrived around 1:30pm. She sings with Michael on the title track “Isle of Dreams”. It was cool to get to hear a bit of her testimony of how life is on the road in the music industry, and how God brought her to the place she is at right now. She’s a very sweet lady and has an incredible voice.
Deke arrived around 2:30pm with his wife, Jill, and his son, Jamie. We had brief introductions, then listened to Deke speak to us for a few minutes about what our goal for this trip was (Do our best, but not worry about selling the musical to the industry people – it will sell itself, and if these people aren’t interested in it, we don’t want them to buy it, and someone else will.) The he stated that we should just show him what we have, and then he would know where to start working from.
So we fired up the cd of the edited presentation that we would be presenting the next day. We sang our heads off and the Lord blessed us – we sounded incredible. So, Deke Arlon is sitting 4 feet from us all, along with his wife and son, scribbling notes in his notebook as we sing through each song. Everyone with a solo did a great job, and I believe we were all very pleased with this performance.
After we had finished, Deke sat there and began speaking to us his thoughts regarding what we had just done. He stated that he was very impressed and thankful that we would not have to do any work vocally with notes or anything like that. Basically, he was saying we sounded good, and now all we had to work on was the staging of each song.
We basically have kept the choreography very simple up to this point. We stand up and sit down, clap and sway, but that’s about it. Deke stated that the real challenge now was to stage each song and it’s transition to the next so that each was decidedly different. So we started at the beginning and begin to talk through each song, throwing out ideas of how we could stage each of them. After each songs was talked through, we would walk through it, and then sing through it until we felt comfortable with it. The we would repeat the process with the next song.
As you can imagine, this is a slow, grueling, tiring process – physically and mentally.
Relief came in the form of dinner at 8:15. We went upstairs and ate a great meal that had been prepared by Robert’s wife, Mary, and Deke’s wife Jill. I met Robert’s daughter Elizabeth, who is very nice, as well as Deke’s West Coast Operations Rep, Betsy, who was also very cordial. I had the privilege to sit next to Lisa Bevil during dinner, and the conversation of our table revolved around the musical (naturally), as well as Christian music in general and the impact we can have on our world.
After dinner we made our way back downstairs to walk through the performance one more time to verify that we knew what we were doing. We did what Deke called “Top and Tail” – which is basically walking through the beginning and ending of each song, focusing on the transitions and making sure we all hit our marks correctly. After this abbreviated walk through, we decided to run through the entire performance one time without stopping. This was the first time Betsy had heard us, so we were trying to give her our best vocally, although at this point we were all trying to save what was left our voices for the following day. It sounded okay, and we all did well at remembering our steps and places.
Deke was pleased with what he had seen. He told us that he has been in this business for decades, and he has worked with some very famous people along the way. He followed that statement up by telling us that he was very impressed with us as a group. He was honest in saying that he could go out and find individuals with more vocal talent or better voices if he wanted/needed to. He also told us that he hasn’t ever work with a group of people that is so eager to take direction and so attentive to the details of that direction. He said that our energetic response to both his criticism and encouragement was unlike anything he had ever seen in a group. He was very impressed with how we had stayed attentive throughout the duration of our now 7+ hour practice, and he knew that we had rehearsed prior to his arrival.
He knew we were tired, and he knew we were wondering when we would sing for him individually. The plan had been to sing as a group for Deke, work through the practice session, and then sing for him individually (which is when he would decide if we were going to be a part of the cast to perform for the as yet unnamed director or not). Honestly, at about the 5 hour point I was hoping that maybe we would sing for Deke the next morning or evening even. My throat was a bit soar and my vocal chords actually ached from the constant use, and I know everyone else felt the same.
It was at this point that Deke made the following statement: “Tomorrow we are going to go before some of the most powerful people in the music industry. We will perform as we did tonight, and they will either love it or not care for it. It doesn’t matter to us either way what they think. What does matter is that we know that we have done our absolute best in the time frame allowed and that is all we can do. You should not be afraid or nervous about singing in front of these people. You all sound great, and I think the staging works well. You are not auditioning for these people. They have no power at this point to make any decisions, so you should not be worried about that. Their opinion of your performance will not matter one bit. As far as I am concerned, you all auditioned for me about 5 hours ago, and I’ll take the whole lot of you. You all sound magnificent, and you blend wonderfully, and I can’t imagine doing this without the whole group as it stand here before me.”
We all stood there shocked, not really sure what to think about that statement. Tired and worn out, and no longer fueled by our adrenaline, we simply all glanced around at each other. Deke talked for a few more minutes, then we loaded into the van to head to the hotel. Once in the van, Michael told us that he had spoken with Deke, and briefly discussed the status of the group. Evidently, Deke was so impressed with the group as a whole that he couldn't see splitting it up for any reason. Even without hearing each of us individually, he was saying that he wanted us to all be a part of the cast! God is truly amazing, and blesses beyond our wildest imagination!
Now as we headed to the hotel, Michael informed us that Deke had heard that we were going to be staying in the Holiday Inn Select down the road. Our group is used to driving through the night to return home, or even staying on the floor at some house (if we have a hotel room, it is usually at some plave like Motel6). All this to say that we were really pleased to be staying in the Holiday Inn. Deke was not so pleased. He stated that if he is staying in a suite, then he wants all of us to stay in one as well. So he personally paid for us to have rooms at the Amerisuites Inn a little further down the road! And since I am the only single guy on the road, and I can't stay in a room with a single woman, I got to have my own suite! What am I suppose to do with 2 double beds, a kitchenette, a lounging area (bed and stuffed chair) and a desk? I guess I'll just simply have to love it and crash into bed smiling at how much God likes to throw unexpected suprises my way...
Well, my alarm went off at 3:03am, and I very quickly got out of bed – lest I fall back asleep. I took a quick shower and then dressed in the clothes that I would wear for the trip down in the van, as well as sing for Deke Arlon in. Naturally, these clothes aren’t the most comfortable to try and sleep in or ride for any great length of time in a car in, but it was required, so I threw them on.
The drive to downtown was smooth with no traffic, and thankfully, no construction on I-70. I arrived at Michael’s around 3:45am. Everyone else in our group is used to getting up early (almost everyone is at work by 5:30am), but that is not the case for me. I was tired (lack of sleep, extreme early wake up time), but everyone else was pretty well up and chatty. Needless to say, we were all very excited. We gathered in the living room and prayed, then loaded into the van and proceeded on our way to Nashville.
My hope was to fall asleep early into the trip, and sleep up until we stopped for breakfast. Well, we were all excited, so there was a lot of talking at the beginning of the trip. This meant that I was not able to fall asleep as I had hoped, and I actually didn’t fall asleep until about 30 minutes before we stopped. And it was a restless sleep, so it wasn’t really worth anything. Breakfast at Cracker Barrel took quite a while, but it was good.
Around noon we pulled up to Robert’s house, which is northeast of Nashville in Hendersonville. It was a nice place, with a finished basement, which housed his music studio and lounge room. We quickly began to setup in the lounge room for our performance for Deke, which would take place later in the evening.
By 12:30, we were beginning to do some sound checks and actually started rehearsing a bit before Deke arrived. Lisa Bevill (Christian music artist) arrived around 1:30pm. She sings with Michael on the title track “Isle of Dreams”. It was cool to get to hear a bit of her testimony of how life is on the road in the music industry, and how God brought her to the place she is at right now. She’s a very sweet lady and has an incredible voice.
Deke arrived around 2:30pm with his wife, Jill, and his son, Jamie. We had brief introductions, then listened to Deke speak to us for a few minutes about what our goal for this trip was (Do our best, but not worry about selling the musical to the industry people – it will sell itself, and if these people aren’t interested in it, we don’t want them to buy it, and someone else will.) The he stated that we should just show him what we have, and then he would know where to start working from.
So we fired up the cd of the edited presentation that we would be presenting the next day. We sang our heads off and the Lord blessed us – we sounded incredible. So, Deke Arlon is sitting 4 feet from us all, along with his wife and son, scribbling notes in his notebook as we sing through each song. Everyone with a solo did a great job, and I believe we were all very pleased with this performance.
After we had finished, Deke sat there and began speaking to us his thoughts regarding what we had just done. He stated that he was very impressed and thankful that we would not have to do any work vocally with notes or anything like that. Basically, he was saying we sounded good, and now all we had to work on was the staging of each song.
We basically have kept the choreography very simple up to this point. We stand up and sit down, clap and sway, but that’s about it. Deke stated that the real challenge now was to stage each song and it’s transition to the next so that each was decidedly different. So we started at the beginning and begin to talk through each song, throwing out ideas of how we could stage each of them. After each songs was talked through, we would walk through it, and then sing through it until we felt comfortable with it. The we would repeat the process with the next song.
As you can imagine, this is a slow, grueling, tiring process – physically and mentally.
Relief came in the form of dinner at 8:15. We went upstairs and ate a great meal that had been prepared by Robert’s wife, Mary, and Deke’s wife Jill. I met Robert’s daughter Elizabeth, who is very nice, as well as Deke’s West Coast Operations Rep, Betsy, who was also very cordial. I had the privilege to sit next to Lisa Bevil during dinner, and the conversation of our table revolved around the musical (naturally), as well as Christian music in general and the impact we can have on our world.
After dinner we made our way back downstairs to walk through the performance one more time to verify that we knew what we were doing. We did what Deke called “Top and Tail” – which is basically walking through the beginning and ending of each song, focusing on the transitions and making sure we all hit our marks correctly. After this abbreviated walk through, we decided to run through the entire performance one time without stopping. This was the first time Betsy had heard us, so we were trying to give her our best vocally, although at this point we were all trying to save what was left our voices for the following day. It sounded okay, and we all did well at remembering our steps and places.
Deke was pleased with what he had seen. He told us that he has been in this business for decades, and he has worked with some very famous people along the way. He followed that statement up by telling us that he was very impressed with us as a group. He was honest in saying that he could go out and find individuals with more vocal talent or better voices if he wanted/needed to. He also told us that he hasn’t ever work with a group of people that is so eager to take direction and so attentive to the details of that direction. He said that our energetic response to both his criticism and encouragement was unlike anything he had ever seen in a group. He was very impressed with how we had stayed attentive throughout the duration of our now 7+ hour practice, and he knew that we had rehearsed prior to his arrival.
He knew we were tired, and he knew we were wondering when we would sing for him individually. The plan had been to sing as a group for Deke, work through the practice session, and then sing for him individually (which is when he would decide if we were going to be a part of the cast to perform for the as yet unnamed director or not). Honestly, at about the 5 hour point I was hoping that maybe we would sing for Deke the next morning or evening even. My throat was a bit soar and my vocal chords actually ached from the constant use, and I know everyone else felt the same.
It was at this point that Deke made the following statement: “Tomorrow we are going to go before some of the most powerful people in the music industry. We will perform as we did tonight, and they will either love it or not care for it. It doesn’t matter to us either way what they think. What does matter is that we know that we have done our absolute best in the time frame allowed and that is all we can do. You should not be afraid or nervous about singing in front of these people. You all sound great, and I think the staging works well. You are not auditioning for these people. They have no power at this point to make any decisions, so you should not be worried about that. Their opinion of your performance will not matter one bit. As far as I am concerned, you all auditioned for me about 5 hours ago, and I’ll take the whole lot of you. You all sound magnificent, and you blend wonderfully, and I can’t imagine doing this without the whole group as it stand here before me.”
We all stood there shocked, not really sure what to think about that statement. Tired and worn out, and no longer fueled by our adrenaline, we simply all glanced around at each other. Deke talked for a few more minutes, then we loaded into the van to head to the hotel. Once in the van, Michael told us that he had spoken with Deke, and briefly discussed the status of the group. Evidently, Deke was so impressed with the group as a whole that he couldn't see splitting it up for any reason. Even without hearing each of us individually, he was saying that he wanted us to all be a part of the cast! God is truly amazing, and blesses beyond our wildest imagination!
Now as we headed to the hotel, Michael informed us that Deke had heard that we were going to be staying in the Holiday Inn Select down the road. Our group is used to driving through the night to return home, or even staying on the floor at some house (if we have a hotel room, it is usually at some plave like Motel6). All this to say that we were really pleased to be staying in the Holiday Inn. Deke was not so pleased. He stated that if he is staying in a suite, then he wants all of us to stay in one as well. So he personally paid for us to have rooms at the Amerisuites Inn a little further down the road! And since I am the only single guy on the road, and I can't stay in a room with a single woman, I got to have my own suite! What am I suppose to do with 2 double beds, a kitchenette, a lounging area (bed and stuffed chair) and a desk? I guess I'll just simply have to love it and crash into bed smiling at how much God likes to throw unexpected suprises my way...
Well, there have been a lot of hindrances and setbacks, but we are finally getting ready to meet the gentleman whose interest led to the purchasing of the musical - Deke Arlon. He is coming in from London to Nashville where he will be meeting with a record company to try and wrap up the record deal. Our group will travel to meet up with Deke this Wednesday and spend the evening with him. It is at this time that each of us will sing for him and basically show him what it is he purchased (He's never actually seen the show, he's only heard the cd...) After the trip is concluded our director, Michael, will tell us if Deke liked each of our performances or not. If he does like it then we will go before the hired director for the show and sing for him (tryout for the role). If Deke does not like it, doesn't think it is what he is looking for in the performance, or simply doesn't think it is good enough then I will not have an opportunity to tryout for the tour.
The following day we will be heading over to a famous recording studio to perform in front of various record company/producer/directors/artists. We will present a sort of abbreviated version of the show (55 minutes) for them. The whole point of this performance is to basically show the company a little bit of what they would be buying into. In the days following our presentation, Deke will be meeting with these people to try and hammer out the deal, so our performance can be a real help to that process.
We are approaching this as a huge moment for our group. Obviously, there is a lot "on the line", but what we are focussing on is that this will be a phenomenal opportunity to share Christ with people who may not know Him. We see this as a great ministerial opportunity, and we want to take every moment to be examples of Christ, in everything we sing, say and do. We are expecting God to show up in a huge way, and we know He will do amazing things.
Please pray for us this week as we prepare to leave and then as we are in Nashville.
God knows the plans He has for me, and I am just thankful for this amazing opportunity!
The following day we will be heading over to a famous recording studio to perform in front of various record company/producer/directors/artists. We will present a sort of abbreviated version of the show (55 minutes) for them. The whole point of this performance is to basically show the company a little bit of what they would be buying into. In the days following our presentation, Deke will be meeting with these people to try and hammer out the deal, so our performance can be a real help to that process.
We are approaching this as a huge moment for our group. Obviously, there is a lot "on the line", but what we are focussing on is that this will be a phenomenal opportunity to share Christ with people who may not know Him. We see this as a great ministerial opportunity, and we want to take every moment to be examples of Christ, in everything we sing, say and do. We are expecting God to show up in a huge way, and we know He will do amazing things.
Please pray for us this week as we prepare to leave and then as we are in Nashville.
God knows the plans He has for me, and I am just thankful for this amazing opportunity!
It's been so long, and quite a bit has been going on. Perhaps at some point I might try to fill in some of the events of the summer, but for now we press oon with recent news...
Deke Arlon is coming to the states! He is suppose to arrive in Nashville on the 21st of September, and leave on the 31st. That is our 10 day window we have been waiting for. We do not have a specific date as to when we might travel down to nashville to perform for him, but Michael thinks it will be toward the front end of the trip (because Deke, Michael and Robert are all planning on meeting with the record company and hammering out a general deal before leaving town). Michael thinks it could be on the very front end (22nd through 26th...) We'll see...
Needless to say, we are all quite excited and can't wait to find out the details.
Deke Arlon is coming to the states! He is suppose to arrive in Nashville on the 21st of September, and leave on the 31st. That is our 10 day window we have been waiting for. We do not have a specific date as to when we might travel down to nashville to perform for him, but Michael thinks it will be toward the front end of the trip (because Deke, Michael and Robert are all planning on meeting with the record company and hammering out a general deal before leaving town). Michael thinks it could be on the very front end (22nd through 26th...) We'll see...
Needless to say, we are all quite excited and can't wait to find out the details.
I found this article on the BMI website regarding our musical. It was posted on 08 May 03. Deke Arlon is the man who has been the main catalyst in the musical being purchased by Sanctuary. Michael is our local leader and co-writer. Robert is the other co-writer and currently lives in Nashville (Super sweet guy). I guess the other guy is from BMI - I have never met him or heard about him. I guess I will be meeting them all again in the not-too-distant future...
We performed back down at Christ's Church in the Lake of the Ozarks. We have performed one other time in December at this church, and we had a wonderful reception - so we expected the same type of performance this time around. The devil was on the prowl and the performance was laiden with troubles. I began my song with complete confidence, and sang the first verse and chorus without event. At the end of the first chorus, suddenly my throat was completely dry and I couldn't figure out why. So I labored through the rest of the song, covering in 2 different places when my voice wouldn't reach the place I needed/wanted it to be.
After completing my song I realized that I couldn't allow my solo to bring down my mood for the remainder of the evening. However, others in the group also struggled and the performance was tough to push through. It was definitely the hardest performance to date for me, and from what I am told possibly the second worst performance in the history of this musical.
I am so glad that God is not limited to our abilities or our presentation of His Word! He still moved amongst the people and helped reveal a valuable lesson to me. I cannot approach my solo with any fear or hesitation. I must claim the victory ahead of time, walk with the confidence of God's omnipotence, and recognize the fact that my gifts/talents are from Him, and I cannot allow Satan to deter me from my ministry.
After completing my song I realized that I couldn't allow my solo to bring down my mood for the remainder of the evening. However, others in the group also struggled and the performance was tough to push through. It was definitely the hardest performance to date for me, and from what I am told possibly the second worst performance in the history of this musical.
I am so glad that God is not limited to our abilities or our presentation of His Word! He still moved amongst the people and helped reveal a valuable lesson to me. I cannot approach my solo with any fear or hesitation. I must claim the victory ahead of time, walk with the confidence of God's omnipotence, and recognize the fact that my gifts/talents are from Him, and I cannot allow Satan to deter me from my ministry.
Tonight was the first softball game I've played this year. This was for the mixed team I play with. We won 13-11. We were up by 9 with a man on base both in the bottom of the 5th and 6th, but we couldn't get him across the plate. So we played the top of the 7th and gave up a bunch of runs to make it close. We really didn't make any bad plays, the other team was just placing the ball really well. But we won, so that is cool.
We performed back down at Christ's Church in the Lake of the Ozarks. We have performed one other time in December at this church, and we had a wonderful reception - so we expected the same type of performance this time around. The devil was on the prowl and the performance was laiden with troubles.
I began my song with complete confidence, and sang the first verse and chorus without event. At the end of the first chorus, suddenly my throat was completely dry and I couldn't figure out why. So I labored through the rest of the song, covering in 2 different places when my voice wouldn't reach the place I needed/wanted it to be.
After completing my song I realized that I couldn't allow my solo to bring down my mood for the remainder of the evening. However, others in the group also struggled and the performance was tough to push through. It was definitely the hardest performance to date for me, and from what I am told possibly the second worst performance in the history of this musical.
I am so glad that God is not limited to our abilities or our presentation of His Word! He still moved amongst the people and helped reveal a valuable lesson to me. I cannot approach my solo with any fear or hesitation. I must claim the victory ahead of time, walk with the confidence of God's omnipotence, and recognize the fact that my gifts/talents are from Him, and I cannot allow Satan to deter me from my ministry.
I began my song with complete confidence, and sang the first verse and chorus without event. At the end of the first chorus, suddenly my throat was completely dry and I couldn't figure out why. So I labored through the rest of the song, covering in 2 different places when my voice wouldn't reach the place I needed/wanted it to be.
After completing my song I realized that I couldn't allow my solo to bring down my mood for the remainder of the evening. However, others in the group also struggled and the performance was tough to push through. It was definitely the hardest performance to date for me, and from what I am told possibly the second worst performance in the history of this musical.
I am so glad that God is not limited to our abilities or our presentation of His Word! He still moved amongst the people and helped reveal a valuable lesson to me. I cannot approach my solo with any fear or hesitation. I must claim the victory ahead of time, walk with the confidence of God's omnipotence, and recognize the fact that my gifts/talents are from Him, and I cannot allow Satan to deter me from my ministry.
Last night the group went to perform a few songs at a Black History Celebration at the Lewis-Clark St. Louis County Library. Michael had told us that we would have 15-20 minutes to ourselves, so we had planned on doing 3, maybe 4 songs. Well, I show up and realize that I will be the only male singer there besides Michael. So this means that on songs where Michael has the lead or a solo, that I would be the only male singing our harmony part. We ended up having 3 females, myself and Michael - which is about half our normal size group. Well, the room was pretty big, and we don't have microphones for the background vocals, so I knew I would have to sing a bit louder than normal to be heard. Then the lady leading the celebration tells the crowd that we will be performing for the last 45 minutes. Michael tells us we are all doing our solos as well as 4 or 5 other songs. As we began to sing more people came in - somewhere around 125 people in the room. So Michael turned up the volume a bit on the music, which meant we had to sing even louder.
My solo went really well, and was really well received by the people in the audience. I spent the last several songs gasping for breath at points, but that was to be expected. I think it sounded quite good - all things considered. The people were very cordial and appreciative, and said we sounded simply amazing.
It's cool how God allowed us to sing in a public place to proclaim His name to the people.
Afterwards, Michael informed me that I would indeed be trying out for Deke Arlon, and that Robert simply loved my voice and attitude towards our whole purpose as a group. It is an amazing group to be a part of, and I am blessed beyond imagination!
My solo went really well, and was really well received by the people in the audience. I spent the last several songs gasping for breath at points, but that was to be expected. I think it sounded quite good - all things considered. The people were very cordial and appreciative, and said we sounded simply amazing.
It's cool how God allowed us to sing in a public place to proclaim His name to the people.
Afterwards, Michael informed me that I would indeed be trying out for Deke Arlon, and that Robert simply loved my voice and attitude towards our whole purpose as a group. It is an amazing group to be a part of, and I am blessed beyond imagination!
This morning our group went to Wellspring of Life Church in North St. Louis to perform 2 of our new songs. The service is held in a skating rink, with around 60 people in attendance. After the church choir lead us in song, we stood up front to sing. The songs went pretty well, considering we have just learned them, and the audience seemed to really enjoy them. We sang "Listen to the Rain" and "Revelator".
Michael was back from Nashville in high spirits, and we quickly realized why. In the 3 working days he spent in the studio, he was able to write and record 3 brand new songs! One of the songs is a solo by John, with the choir joining on the chorus in a quasi round fashion. The second song has a very upbeat tempo, and might be the most vocally challenging songs in the entire music to date. It requires a broad range, and demands that the vocalist jump from one octave to another in a single beat. Very tough, but very entertaining! The third song was also fairly quick, and adds even more depth to the song list of the performance.
When we had just finished rehearsing the new songs, Michael called up Robert on the phone to let him hear what we had already accomplished with the new material. Robert was very impressed and was very excited about what he heard. Then he dropped a bomb on Michael... Robert told us that Deke Arlon (of Sanctuary Productions) had just told him that he wanted to meet the cast, and was thinking of flying into St. Louis to meet us. Naturally, we were all very thrilled to hear that, and are hoping that this indeed does become a reality. It would be so awesome to be able to present this to Deke for the first time in the place where it all began. We await details with eager anticipation, all the while rehearsing for that moment. Whether it happens in Michael's basement here in St. Louis or in a theatre in Nashville, we are planning on blowing everyone away with the Message in the music. God is so Giving and Wonderful!
When we had just finished rehearsing the new songs, Michael called up Robert on the phone to let him hear what we had already accomplished with the new material. Robert was very impressed and was very excited about what he heard. Then he dropped a bomb on Michael... Robert told us that Deke Arlon (of Sanctuary Productions) had just told him that he wanted to meet the cast, and was thinking of flying into St. Louis to meet us. Naturally, we were all very thrilled to hear that, and are hoping that this indeed does become a reality. It would be so awesome to be able to present this to Deke for the first time in the place where it all began. We await details with eager anticipation, all the while rehearsing for that moment. Whether it happens in Michael's basement here in St. Louis or in a theatre in Nashville, we are planning on blowing everyone away with the Message in the music. God is so Giving and Wonderful!
Sorry it has been so long since my last update... Let's see... As of last week, The Revelation is officially owned by Sanctuary Productions! The actual contracts have now been signed, and the musical is officially in development! Hallelujah!
Michael is down in Nashville this week working on the CD, and he left saying that we might have some new material to work on when he comes back. It is amazing how gifted Michael is, and how God has blessed him with the talent to hear a melody, conceive the lyrics, compose the score, play the instruments and profeesionally mix it all together in such a short period of time. (Literally in a matter of hours sometimes!)
Michael is down in Nashville this week working on the CD, and he left saying that we might have some new material to work on when he comes back. It is amazing how gifted Michael is, and how God has blessed him with the talent to hear a melody, conceive the lyrics, compose the score, play the instruments and profeesionally mix it all together in such a short period of time. (Literally in a matter of hours sometimes!)
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