the sound of silence

Keith Richards once described silence as the canvas upon which the colors of music become art.

“A painter starts with a blank canvas, and as a musician, your canvas is silence. You don’t want to cover it all up. So if you know what you’re doing as a musician, you play the silences. You can’t fall into that trap of trying to get everything in and playing so fast. You have to take time and pace yourself. Otherwise, technically you may make people go ‘wow’, but it doesn’t make good music.”

The family has been out-of-town all week and the sounds of laughter, tears, song, and screaming have been absent.  It has caused me to reflect on the sound of silence.  Many of us try to fill our lives with sound – a television on in the background, an iPod in our ears, a radio on our commute, even “white noise” to put us to sleep.  Sound is a beautiful thing.

However, in our pursuit of sound, I wonder if we have lost the discipline of silence.  Perhaps some of us are even fearful of the silence?  The movement of air across membranes at different frequencies often connects us to memories or emotions.  Music is powerful.  I wonder though, if sometimes we are afraid of what the silence might show us?  We would rather cover up our pain or insecurity with sound than sit in the silence.

Silence is what makes music beautiful.  Silence is not only the absence of sound – it is the presence of reflection.  Silence is what allows for dynamics and motion in music – as well as in life.  Silence is what has caused me to appreciate the sounds of my life – the laughter and tears, the songs and the screaming – that I too often take for granted.

There is a powerful lesson about silence from the prophet Elijah in 1 Kings 19:11.  After an incredible journey from the summit of spiritual experience to the valley of despair and depression, Elijah found himself alone in a cave awaiting an answer from God.  As he waited, he was visited by a crushing wind, a destructive earthquake, and a consuming fire.  God was not in the extravagant displays, but instead followed those in a “gentle whisper.”  The literal translation of the phrase is “the sound of silence.”  The singular most defining moment in this man’s life was not in the extravagant, but was in the silence.

Silence not only give motion to music, but it opens a door for us to hear the things we may be hiding from.  Silence is its own language which we must learn to speak just as fluently as the language of sound.  We must listen intently for the sound of silence.

MuteMath Spotlight

I have only discovered this band in the past few months and have been thoroughly impressed with their writing.  Musically, they blend rhythm with ambience to create a sense of urgency in the listener.

A few weeks ago we used this song to set the stage for a night that looked at the things that hold us hostage.  As the song began with the single guitar line and the chorus of synchronized claps, a single spotlight pierced the blackness to reveal nothing more than a microphone.  As the drums entered, a tall figure emerged in to the circle of the spotlight visibly disturbed by its brightness.  Suddenly he realized that he was bound from head to toe in ropes that restricted his movement.  He tried with everything he could to escape this madness but the more he struggled the tighter the ropes cinched around his wrists and torso.  As much as he wanted to leave this spotlight, once inside of it, he could not escape.  The hostage went on to sing of trying everything to no avail and holding on to the things that caused him pain – struggling to escape from his situation the whole time.  While he poured his heart out, his thoughts and secrets were being broadcast on two giant screens for all to see, “liar, addict, pornography, lust, suicide….” – the bold bright letters harshly contrasted against the blackness which was his life.  As the chaos of the drums subsided but for a moment, this character surrendered the struggle and fell in to his Creator’s arms.  And the ropes?  They suddenly sloughed off his body.  Finally unrestrained, the man began to dance in his newfound freedom as the chaos of the music returned.

This song helped to paint a picture of the things that hold us hostage without us even realizing they do.  The first step to finding freedom is to bring those things in to the spotlight.  When we do, it is difficult and we are often embarrassed and want nothing more than to return to our shadows.  But, the spotlight is where we find healing.

Where does my heart need healing?  Where is there darkness that I need light?  What am I afraid of bringing in to the open?

why?

I have a highly addictive personality.  This has not been an easy lesson to learn and perhaps even more difficult to admit.  For some people, this flaw brings about a life of extremes – success and destruction.  Addictive people cannot be moderately committed to something – and such is my weakness.

Which leads me to blogging.  My weakness has taught me that I must be purposeful in everything I do.  My addictions must be purposeful if they are not to destroy me.  I must proceed with caution in new ventures lest they consume me.  So as I begin this blog, I must ask the question “why?”

Many blogs have an agenda or a message which they desire to propagate.  This is a great medium to carry out such a task.  Everyone has opinions (myself included) which we share with the world.

For me, my blog must be different lest I become consumed with blogrolls and google hits.  My vision for this is to become somewhat of my own personal journal.  It is my thoughts expressed in words.  It is not a diary of my secrets confessions, but rather the questions that I ask and the lessons that I learn.

But why are you publishing your journal for the whole world to see?  First of all, I don’t care if no one sees it.  This is a healthy exercise for me.  But, if they do see it, I hope that this can be an encouragement to them and that it could be a place we can share together – moving towards creativity and expression together.