This week I’m hosting Sarah Sundin with A Distant Melody and Catherine Imbert who writes music. If you want to enter the drawing for Sarah’s book, please leave a comment on one of the post during the week with your email address. I will not enter you without an email address (my way to contact you if you win). If you don’t want to leave an email address, another way you can enter is to email me at margaretdaley@gmail.com. The drawings end Sunday (Mar. 28th) evening.
Interview with Catherine Imbert, song writer:
1. What made you start writing music?
I wrote down a few songs when I was a teenager. Then in college I majored in music education. We had to compose. I guess that is when I started to write, but still not seriously. The first real serious composing came when I was about 40 years old, when a parent of one of my piano students needed someone to write music for her exercise video. She asked me if I knew anyone who composed. I didn’t, but asked her if she wanted me to give it a try. I’ve been composing since then.
2. How long have you been writing music and playing?
It is a two part answer to this question: I’ve been ‘making up’ songs my whole life. As a very young child I would sing and dance all around the house making up the songs, words, and movement as I danced along. I also would play my songs on a toy organ.
I started formal organ lessons at age 9. This was later followed by piano, voice, guitar, recorder, and several other instruments.
3. Why do you write songs?
I compose because the music needs to be written down. I write songs when an emotion needs to be expressed. Sometimes it is easier to say what I am feeling by composing music. I write songs commercially also.
I ‘hear’ music all the time. When there is a need for a song I just write down what I am ‘hearing’. Here is an example: I recently started working with a small group of boy ages 8 to 10, teaching them keyboard. They needed to learn in a very different way then what most books are designed for. So, I simply wrote them a program for learning the keyboard, just for them. Of course now, other people can use this program also.
4. What would you be doing with your free time if you weren’t writing music and playing?
I can not imagine my life without the music. God is the biggest part of my life, and He guides the music which is a huge part of who I am. It is a way to communicate with God. I teach private piano, voice, and guitar lessons both on line and in person. So, if I wasn’t writing, I would still be teaching music. Outside of music I like to cook and read and do craft projects.
5. What are you working on right now?
I recently finished a book and CD of Marches for preschoolers. And I also just finished a book of “Learning To Read The Treble Clef” – which can be used by all ages from 5 to 105.
6. Do you have any advice for other songwriters?
Yes, keep on listening to the music and writing it down. And please learn how to read music if you don’t already know how. This way you know it has been written down exactly the way you want it.
7. How important is faith in your music?
It is very important. The music is an inspiration from God. As you know, “With God all things are possible”. It is through Him that I am able to write the music and glorify God.
8. What themes do you like to write about?
I wouldn’t say I write about themes. I write by what I’m feeling or hearing around me. And example: I get impressions of and from people about them and their lives and what is happening in their lives. Each year I write a book of songs in which there are 12 songs of 12 people who have been in my life that year. Usually there are no words, just the music. The people that know the people I write about say that definitely that is that person.
Blurb from “Marches” Volume One
Music has mood, just like you and I do. Music can be happy. We call this Major. Music can be sad. We call this Minor. With this book and CD we are going to listen, feel, and do happy (Major) and sad (Minor) sounds, and you will learn how to tell these two sounds apart from each other. When music is happy it makes us feel a movement upward in our body. When music is sad it makes us feel a movement pushing us downward.
