Tell us about yourself, Constance
- I am over half a century old
- I grew up in a big city in Ontario, Canada.
- My favourite foods are cheese and chocolate
- I am all for gathering with friends to eat together and chat, even if the meal consists of peanut butter sandwiches
- My favourite animal is the cat.
Tell us about your music
Music has always been a special joy to me. While still a child I enjoyed classical guitar and piano lessons. When I was a teenager, our church’s youth pastor allowed me to play guitar along with him at our youth group meetings.
In the fall of 1999, I was a volunteer at an inner city outreach. I was enjoying coffee and conversation with some of the people who lived downtown. I had put my name on my styrofoam coffee cup (we were re-using our cups, trying to be more environmentally friendly). Just for fun, I put “songwriter” after my name. The night before I had written a song which, for me back then, was not a common thing. (The song was "Feel Your Heartbeat" - click here to read and listen to it). In my mind, people who wrote music were quite special and rare. I thought it must be wonderful to have the gift to create tunes and poetic verse and weave them together to create a song! As far as I was concerned, that would only happen to me in my dreams.
Pastor Jim, the director at the outreach, was nearby. I called him over and showed him my cup. He smiled and said, “May it be so.” God heard his simple prayer and blessed me with more than I could dream.
I enjoy playing: guitars (acoustic, electric and bass), piano (and electronic keyboards), recorder (and tin whistles and penny-whistles), and drums (and percussion). Sometimes I get out my harmonicas, violin, clarinet or cow bells – genuine cow bells. I heard one of my fellow music team members at church wish for a cowbell. I found some cowbells for sale in town (there are some advantages to living in a rural area) and brought them to practice. He had a good laugh because the cowbell that he was talking about is a drum kit cowbell and not a real cowbell; quite a different animal.
I compose both lyrics and music i.e. melody and accompaniment. I write down on paper and/or enter the songs into my computer using notation programs e.g. Encore (by Passport Music Software). In the beginning, the auto-accompaniment on my Yamaha keyboard was good inspiration; it had a number of different styles of music e.g. reggae, hip-hop and jazz. I also found music generation software e.g. Band-in-a-Box (by PG Music) to be helpful. I have used my computer to record some of my songs. You can read and listen to them at soundclick.com/steadyelm.
Lately I have been trying to think “outside the box”; for example, using different chord progressions. In the future, I would like to experiment with rhythms.
Sometimes I create videos of my songs. Here is a fun, upbeat song that will get your toes tapping and your hands clapping! It is called “Trustworthy Through and Through.”
I wanted to be “God’s musician,” writing songs and playing with the worship team at church for Him. Then I realized that might also entail helping a neighbour learn to play their new guitar; entertaining at the local fair, at a homeless shelter or at a nursing home. Who said being a musician is boring? Not!
Recently, however, it occurred to me that my desire to be God’s musician was slightly misguided. “Musician” refers to what I do, not who I am. More correctly, I am God’s daughter. I have come to realize that, not only am I blessed to have food, shelter and clothes; I am blessed because I belong to God. What love – that God calls me His child! [see 1 John 3:1] Here is a poem along those lines: “I Am God’s Treasure.”
P.S. Back in the fall of 1999, when I had just began to compose music in earnest, I came across an entry in the daily devotional, Our Daily Bread, that remarked on a habit of musical genius Johann Sebastian Bach. Often at the bottom of a manuscript he would write the letters INDNJC, standing for the Latin words In Nomine Domini Nostri Jesu Christi, “In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” I decided to adopt Bach’s practice. It is a helpful reminder to follow Paul’s directive, “Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus.” Colossians 3:17.