A Story of Discerning the Gift of Music

Music has always been a part of my life, but I never thought of it as a charism until I took part in the Called and Gifted process.
I started learning the piano and guitar as a young child. But as I’ve never played by ear (although I’ve never tried that hard!) I’ve always assumed that those who could, were the ones who were gifted.

However, on reflection, I realise that my gifting lies not in my technical or performance skills but in my ability to select music and facilitate musical opportunities for different small groups which in turn has a positive and beneficial effect on those taking part.

When my 4 children were young, I set up a pre-school music group from home where mothers and carers with young children would attend weekly themed sessions. I loved running these classes and the feedback was so positive that I continued to run them for the next 17 years on the various air bases where we lived and latterly in Ampleforth.

The children blossomed and grew in confidence and the adults, often frazzled when they arrived, always left saying how much calmer and less stressed they felt. Furthermore, it was a wonderful opportunity to teach the children about Jesus by incorporating music connected to the liturgical seasons – particularly Advent and the Nativity.

“some of them threw their arms round us after the first Mass saying how uplifting and joyful the music had been.”

At my children’s prep school, I was involved in setting up a Christian folk music group to play at school Masses where I would adapt musical parts for the less advanced musicians so they too could participate. The turnout was wonderful and despite initial resistance from the headmaster to this style of music, it was well received by staff and parents. In fact some of them threw their arms round us after the first Mass saying how uplifting and joyful the music had been.

Over the last 15 years I have also been involved in selecting and playing music at various house and prayer groups, as well as school assemblies, children’s liturgies and Holy Communion classes. As St Augustine said ‘to sing is to pray twice.’ In fact my daughter frequently asks me if I sing anything else apart from hymns and worship music! But since attending a convent school from 5 to 16 and singing hymns constantly with my mother on the long school runs every day, they have become an integral part of my life. The words of a hymn will always spring to mind in relation to a Gospel reading, a situation I’m facing (challenging or otherwise), and in relation to nature and the beauty around us. And this is what I enjoy sharing with others and what others have commented on has touched them or spoken to them in a specific way. So I feel that this, combined with the enthusiasm and energy I feel in these situations is definitely a charism.