Music

Music is very much at the heart of my life.

I was brought up in music. My parents love musicals and that was very much passed onto me. I love watching to them, listening to them and very much performing them. Both parents were musical, my dad a great singer and actor and I grew up watching him in pantomime (ok not very musical but he sang in it!) and many musicals. My mum was a great musician, she could read and write music and played many instruments. Both were part of the music group in church. Me, my brother and my sister all had recorder lessons at a very young age so learnt to read music, then when we were 8 were given the opportunity to start learning an instrument. I chose the flute. I had lessons for 7/8 years and did 5 grades. I was part of orchestras and played every single sunday in the music group at mass for 8 years. Even when I stopped playing flute I continued to sing in the music group. My brother and sister also learnt instruments and played in the music group, we were like the von trapp family singers!
Not only did I love playing instruments but I loved listening to music and from a very young age I would have cds on in my bedroom and pretend to be in various bands, always the lead singer and perform in the mirror if you like! Often put on shows with neighbours to parents and just loved singing and dancing. I once wanted to persue a career in the west end as a dancer but I did not start young enough to do it professionally.
Then of course I started performing and nearly all the performances I have ever been part of have been musicals (I think Panto is the only non musical I've done and even that has a few songs!) and nearly all the shows I have ever seen have been musicals.
I also had singing lessons. I was a decent singer and was taking on more serious am dram where I was amongst some very very talented people and my mum wanted to boost my confidence. Those singing lessons were a god send and brought me great peace of mind and relaxation as well as teaching me a few things about singing!
I am not the 'typical' music enthuasiast as many would call musical people those who love playing their instruments (I gave mine up) and can't live without their instruments and who only listen to 'real' music with real musicians - as in bands who write and perform their own music, no machines. Also go to loads of gigs and festivals.
Music touches my life in a different way. For a start, many would say my taste can be appaling. I have a wide wide range of genres and artists on my ipod, I don't fit into a category at all. And a lot is cheesy pop. But I love it, I grew up in the 90s with S Club and Steps being my two greatest bands! And I can't be without music. I hate silence (I say that as I'm in the middle of my 24 hours of silence for Million Minutes - will post about that tomorrow) but silence used to be very scary to me as it would be when my deamons of depression really came alive and wouldn't go away. Music distracted me. So became a God send.
And as you must know through looking at this blog, lyrics mean everything to me. I find a lot of meaning in lyrics, something many would take the mick out of me for, but lyrics have a lot of meaning, thats why the song was written with those lyrics, to have a meaning. And I search for the meaining in lyrics and get great strength from them. And they are often my status on facebook and my tweets as I use them to express how I'm feeling and can often help me explain what's going on in my head - people also take the mick out of me for this.

So I really love music and couldnt imagine life without it:
'So I say thankyou for the music, for giving it to me'