Music

It’s strange, for all my musing about finding inspiration, I’ve yet to mention music here. And yet music is a huge part of my daily life and has been for decades. I’m almost always listening to something in the house, in the car, in the studio, and in whatever café I’m using to post this blog entry. It serves as a backdrop, yes, but more often as a driver, a soother, a spark, for whatever is at task. Music is a key element in my beloved road trips, and a must-have to stay motivated during a run.

Recently, I stumbled upon a YouTube video of Justin Vernon, a.k.a. Bon Iver (a top ten favorite of mine), covering “I Can’t Make You Love Me.” It was so well done, I had to pause my work and choke up a bit. Something to do with Bon Iver’s signature falsetto combined with the spareness of the piano playing made a great song hit even harder…yet more softly?

It was a reminder that inspiration is very much about feeling something, and the right music can, likewise, cause that visceral reaction - a tightening in the chest, a tingle in that primal core of the brain, a movement of ideas, or, a pause to appreciate something beautiful.