Are you the conductor of your own life? An orchestra conductor has a unique role in the process of making music. She studies to understand the musical score and the intentions of the composer, combining that knowledge with her connections to and relationships with the members of the orchestra. The conductor does not play an instrument or use her voice in any way, but the music relies on her expertise in many ways. The conductor “reads” a musical score by learning the structure and semantics of each composer’s language and integrating her own imagination and creativity into the mix. She communicates this reading of the score to the orchestra through words during rehearsals, but during performances using only gestures, emotions, facial expressions, and a tiny stick called a baton. Then she gets out of the way to let the composer shine.
We could take a lesson or two from the conductor’s process. Rather than thinking that “conducting” our lives means that we make it up as we go, how would it be different if we thought of conducting the music of God in our lives? We bring our creativity and attention to the process of making music, but the score is already written; our role is to resonate and amplify it. The conductor is not Mozart, but she brings him to life each time the orchestra performs the music he created. In the same way, we can bring Jesus to life this week as we create his music in our world.
This playlist includes Mozart’s Requiem in its entirely, in preparation for Holy Week.