RockOm

By Trevor Harden, Trevor@RockOm.net

Since forming in 1985 as a band of middle school students, the rock quartet known as Live has grown to become one of the most popular and enduring alternative rock acts of the past two decades. They gained massive mainstream success with their sophomore breakthrough album Throwing Copper in 1994 and have since gone on to sell more than 20 million CDs worldwide.

Live frontman Eddie Kowalczyk is currently on an acoustic tour called Open Wings, Broken Strings with Leigh Nash of Sixpence None The Richer and Art Alexakis of Everclear. He is also working on a rocking new solo album to be released in spring of 2010 (details and mailing list at eddieklive.com).

Eddie sat down with RockOm's Trevor Harden to discuss his spiritual journey, rediscovering the Bible, the power of performing acoustically and more...

Trevor: Since Live's first album, Mental Jewelry, you've always allowed depth and spiritual truth into your lyrics. That album came out when you guys were very young so was there a catalyst that started you down that spiritual path? Can you speak about where that longing for something deeper came from?

Ed: Sure. I was baptized and confirmed Roman Catholic but never really got into it much beyond the routine of occasional church going and the formalities of the religion, never really digging that deeply into it as a child. Then as a teenager, I had a natural tendency to dig a little deeper than what was handed to me as a kid, in terms of spirituality and religion. When I was about 16 or 17 in high school I noticed that I was really interested in meditation and seeking Truth and a deeper meaning to my existence. I ended up wandering into a metaphysical bookstore that was near where I lived one day and saw a book by J. Krishnamurti called You Are the World; I bought it on a whim. It ended up being a book about questioning conditioning. He put everything into question in terms of what we accept as true or real and why we do so. It was maybe the first time I did that - to look at the ideas and beliefs I held about God and Truth and ask myself if they were accurate and what I was getting from it.

So that started my questioning which then led into years of meditating and reading. I've always been an avid reader of scripture and philosophy and never went to college so that was kind of my education. In the mid-1990's I met Ken Wilber and became really good friends with him and read his book called A Brief History of Everything which was a major watershed opening of my mind. Then about four or five years ago I did something called the Big Mind project with a man named Genpo Roche, a Zen master who developed a piercing kind of Zen questioning process. Since then I've come full circle by re-investigating the Bible from a metaphysical point of view - reinterpreting scripture in a way that relates to consciousness. That has been the main focus of my life for the last four years. It's definitely not a type of Christianity that people would recognize as typical or dogmatic; it's about the furthest you could be from fundamentalism but nonetheless Christian in nature. I'm really discovering the Bible for the first time in terms of unlocking its potential to teach us about reality.

Alongside all of that, it's music all the time. Music and songwriting is an extension of that search and has given me a lot to think about. It's been a fount of inspiration for me throughout the years and people seem to dig it.

Trevor: What are you finding in the life and teachings of Jesus that you weren't finding elsewhere or that you're finding unique?

Ed: It's unique in it's power, unique in it's breadth of influence. But you have to get away from looking at it as just a moral code and dig deeper into the language of the Bible and I'm interpreting it as it relates to consciousness itself or being itself. One of the simple ways that I see the power in it is every time the Bible says God or Lord or Christ is to relate that directly to consciousness itself, which is ever present and intermingling with your own being at a very deep level. So that unlocks an interest in prayer and meditation that was there but is now even more driven to a deeper place, understanding that as we touch that deep level that our life becomes the fruitage of that. We're happier, our relationships become more harmonious... "you shall know them by their fruits" stuff starts to happen. There's an extra sparkle in my eye and a smile that wasn't there for a while by ucovering that because of the depth of this prayer and practicing going to that place where we all become one. There's a very powerful silence there and it really reveals a lot.

As a musician and artist, you can't really ask for more than that. I come out of these periods with incredible inspiration and want to sing about it. Being able to go full circle and pick up the Bible again has been very powerful for me because it was a book that I really just didn't understand in a way that meant much to me for years. It's a sort of a coming home, but in my own way. It has been really, really exciting and powerful.

Trevor: You're currently offering the free download of your song "Forever" on eddieklive.com. It's a beautiful acoustic version of the song with the great line, "The darker the night, the brighter the dawn." Can you tell us a little about your inspiration for this song?

Ed: Again, coming from rediscovering the Bible and words like faith, that particular lyric is trying to express that when we see our ideal - the best case scenario, the most loving scenario, the fullest life, God or Truth - to keep our attention there in spite of what is appearing as an obstacle or limitation. As you keep the faith and keep your attention on that ideal and get more and more stronger doing that you find that the negativity leaves. You discover you've moved past the limitations and closer to the ideal in ways that are beyond imagination. Everyone has experienced that but this was just putting it into a context that is hopefully inspirational to people. It's something that has had an incredible impact on my life.

Trevor: All musicians talk about that mystical thing that happens in a live setting where there's a unity and connection you have with the audience. I'm sure it happens at both the loud rock concerts with the band as well as in the quiet, acoustic solo performances that you're currently doing. Can you talk about how the texture of that is different in both of those settings?

Ed: It's really different. Look, I love to rock. I've been in a great band for years and love to turn up the amps and have all the lights going and the big PA. But there's a part of you that sits by yourself in a room and writes a song that doesn't get to be on stage then. He has to recoil back into a little place of being there, but not really. Stripping it down and making it an acoustic, intimate setting really allows that guy to come forward. I had really kind of missed him. You obviously have that when you start out, when the crowds are smaller, but as the band gets bigger and your art succeeds, it becomes a persona that is designed to fill these big spaces. With this "Open Wings, Broken Strings" tour, the idea was to strip that down and put artists on the bill that were also ready for those types of things in their music. There's a fullness about the show that everyone is sharing in and the crowds are just loving it. A lot of them have said to me, "I never knew it could rock that much or be that compelling." That trips me out because that's where the music comes from, but I guess yeah, if you've never seen me acoustic you wouldn't know. This is just another view and it's really neat.

Trevor: In that setting you can talk about the meaning behind the songs and share the background a little bit. Are there any of your songs that you're particularly enjoying "clearing the air" about? Is there any song that you really enjoy telling the real story and meaning behind because it has maybe been misunderstood in the past or is perhaps a bit cryptic?

Ed: You know, I keep them that way a lot. I actually just did an introduction to "Lightening Crashes" the other night and said if I had a dollar for every time someone asked me what this song meant, I'd have a lot more dollars. I basically stepped off it again by saying that I have a feeling about what it means but people have received such different impressions about that song in lots of good ways that I don't want to influence that. I've said it's about reincarnation for me at periods of time in my life but I still tend to back away from that because there's something about the openness of it - letting it be interpreted in the way people receive it - that is really powerful.

www.eddieklive.com

Frontman James LaBrie opens up for the first time on the band's spirituality (and more)
By Trevor Harden, trevor@RockOm.net

Dream Theater has had one of the longest and most influential careers in all of modern progressive rock. Considered by many to be metal's alpha dog in terms of musical technicality and composition, it is no wonder the group's hardcore fan base is enormous, ecstatic and dedicated.

Black Clouds and Silver Linings arrived as Dream Theater's tenth studio album upon its release by Roadrunner Records on June 23rd. As you're about to see, the band considers it to be a return to their roots, exploring familiar musical and lyrical themes from DT's past. Throughout Black Clouds, as in the rest of their material, frontman James LaBrie shows off his tremendous vocal range through sweeping melodies and heartfelt delivery, singing lyrics that explore the spectrum from real-life experience to philosophical struggles.

In this exclusive RockOm interview, LaBrie shares his impression of the new album, discusses the group's team-based songwriting process and, for the first time, opens up about his personal convictions as well as the spirituality in Dream Theater's members and music.

RockOm: You guys have had quite a career and have a prolific catalog of music. With this new album's release, what would you say you’re most proud of on Black Clouds and Silver Linings whether it be one of the songs, something you communicated or something musically or vocally?

James LaBrie: I think it’s showing that I’m continuing to grow as a vocalist. What I always find exciting is I’m able to take the music and the lyrical message, through literal meaning and through my own interpretation, and make it my own so that emotionally and expressively it can become something sincere. It’s something I am really passionate about and it’s important for me to convey that. With this album especially – not that I haven’t on other albums – I think I landed on something that was really cool [in that way] and I think it shows.

Musically I think the album is incredibly reflective of Dream Theater’s roots. It’s a collection of who and what we are today and who and what we’ve been. I think that you can go back to songs such as “Learning to Live” and you can hear elements of that. You can hear parts of Awake, parts of A Change in Seasons, even from Scenes from a Memory. When you get into a song like “A Nightmare to Remember” it seems very linear and like a movie unfolding before your eyes. Because of that, it’s made the album very powerful and very personal. When we look out there and see the reception we’re getting from the fans, but also because the album is selling incredibly well for us in today’s environment, I think it goes to speak for itself and that we’re not the only ones who are feeling it. We’ve touched on something we can all be proud of.

RockOm: As Dream Theater really is a group effort with everyone contributing musically and lyrically, do you always agree with the lyrics that one of your other band mates has penned for you to sing? If not, how do you deal with that?

James: If something was written that I thought was very offensive and literally pointing out someone’s fallible qualities then I would definitely say something. I would say, “You know, I’m not comfortable singing this. If you want to somehow convey it some other way, then great.” But we’ve never crossed that bridge and I hope we never do. A creative environment is intense to begin with and you don’t need anything else to aggravate the situation.

I’ve always found that I sit down with the lyric, I read it and I have it say to me what it says to me. We all interpret things slightly differently because of our own experiences. So I take that first and I internalize that. Then I will go to whoever the lyricist was and get a literal meaning from them so that I’m absorbing exactly what it is that he is trying to say. From there, I will go away once again and I will sit with all that has been said and I make it eventually become who and what I am. So I’ve never really found it to be contrived, forced or insincere when I’m singing something. I’ve always found myself feeling, “This is how it moves me. This is the emotional strain that it has pulled from me. And this is how I’m going to express it.” I think that’s the only way to do it. If I was trying to be who and what the other lyricists are and how they’ve been affected by their experiences, I think it would be too mechanical, too forced and too insincere.

RockOm: From the earliest Dream Theater albums with songs such as "Voices" to more recent songs such as "In the Name of God" and now with "A Rite of Passage,” you guys have always peppered your lyrics with religious and spiritual imagery. This is done as both pro-spirituality and looking to one’s self for the answers as well as condemnation of religion’s negative aspects. Does the band have some sort of common ground when it comes to these philosophical and spiritual matters or is everyone more or less individual in that regard?

James: We’ve never actually talked about this. Let me first say, I respect anyone’s religion because it’s up to the individual what you pull from that. If that makes you feel more connected and more grounded then it’s always doing something good. It’s the reverse of that, when it starts to become something prejudiced and something judgmental that it no longer serves a valid purpose.

You know [guitarist] John Petrucci is probably the most conformed religious person in the band. He’s very much Roman Catholic and his Catholicism is extremely important to him and his family. And yet John will actually question the validity of religions and just how positive they can be is always open for debate because there’s so much corruption around organized religions. I think that’s healthy because when you stop questioning something – even if it doesn’t make sense to you – that’s when it becomes very scary. It then becomes more cult-like and you’re no longer thinking for yourself; you’re just doing what you’ve been told is correct. So I find it very fascinating to a degree that many of John’s stories and lyrics – like “In the Name of God” where he questions all these cult figures – are based around this figure that has all the answers and is the only way to eternity.

As for myself, I was raised Roman Catholic. My mother still goes to church religiously every week and my father passed away a few years ago but he did as well up until his passing. But I remember when I was 16 or 17 thinking, “This doesn’t connect with me any more.” There were too many questions, too many contradictions as far as I was concerned. So I started to get more into books like those by Dr. Wayne W. Dyer and stuff that I felt was a little more open-minded and was for the good of humankind. I’m interested in understanding, first and foremost, who is within. Don’t turn that voice off, listen to it, because that really is your enlightenment. I think when we go to existential means to find the answers, our direction and our purpose, that’s when things get cloudy. If we look further into ourselves we all as a world community would be able to communicate much better and there would be more harmony throughout the world. There’s no doubt in my mind.

People should have philosophical questions. There’s not one day that goes by that I don’t think, "This existence, this consciousness is so bizarre... and space and what’s beyond space."  You can get into some really crazy and frightening thoughts if you want. But I think the goal is to surrender yourself and know that what this all is is beyond comprehension. I don’t think it is something we’re supposed to figure out at this point. I do think that there is something absolutely mind-blowing and incredible that awaits us beyond this physical form because… what the hell is this, you know? [laughs]

Everybody goes, “Oh, well this is all random.” This is all random? Look at space and look at the fact that the sun is where it is and we are where we are. Is it just a fluke that we’re just so many millions of miles from the sun that it’s the perfect setting for creating this planet as it is with organisms? Maybe so, but then again there’s supposed to be another ten million planets throughout the universe that are capable of holding life as we know it here on this earth. So, I don’t know – that’s pretty immense.

RockOm: I understand you’re a big fan of literature. What are you reading right now and/or what was the most profound book you’ve read recently?

James: I’m reading The Idiot by Fyodor Dostoevsky. It’s based on this man that is thought to have been simple-minded but then when he speaks with other people he’s brilliant. He’s so wise that he floors everyone and they’re captivated by his speech. Everyone is magnetized by his wisdom. It’s set in the 19th century and the only reason he was thought to be “the idiot” is that he suffered from epilepsy and through frequent episodes, his body and mind had been drained. It’s just an interesting book and it gets into that whole love territory and how he immerses himself into that is really interesting.

RockOm: I’d like to ask you about a few of the themes and songs on Black Clouds. In the song "Wither" you sing, "Like reflections on a page, the world's what you create." Is that something that you subscribe to or experience?

James: I think it’s something we all experience. Through our experiences, we do create who and what we are and what we become. Because of those experiences, that’s what inspires the making of the character that we are, giving us the personality that we take on. So yes, who and what you are is a reflection of the experiences you’ve gone through that then creates the person in front of you.

RockOm: "Shattered Fortress" seems to me to be a song about shedding away your previous understanding of the world, maturing and adopting a new and more noble understanding. What does this song mean to you?

James: Well it’s the final chapter to the [Twelve Step] Suite that Mike Portnoy has written dealing with alcoholism and addiction. Yes, it’s about being assured that you are in a place that is much better than where you just came from. That you are much more insightful as to what really matters in life. Through that experience you realize all your mistakes and realize that no one is infallible. But what you’ve done is you’ve bettered yourself to a point where your life experience is much more rich and satisfying and mature.

RockOm: ...and then that opens you up to want to help and serve other people, according to the last line in the song as you sing, "I am responsible when anyone, anywhere reaches out for help."

James: Yes, absolutely because you’re setting an example for others in saying, “Look, as tough and as miserable as life became for me, this is where I am today. Nothing is impossible. You can do it as well and look to me and call upon me for strength if need be.” Anyone can exist within this realm, which is a much better place to be than living out the heinous acts that people take part in when they’re susceptible to such addictions.

RockOm: Let’s conclude with a question about performing. How do you describe those nights when the band is spot-on and connecting with one another so that you remember that night, that town, and those songs above all other shows? In other words, when you’re on and in the zone, what transpires making those concerts different from the others?

James: I don’t know! We used to go out there and say, “Oh, this is going to be a great show” but we don’t do that anymore because when we did it would always end up to be a cluster. We’ll come off and say, “What the hell happened there? There were clams here and clams there.” So I think it’s just you get into a zone where it’s a cohesive endeavor and it’s effortless. You’re finding that you’re up there and you’re responding to the energy that you’re getting from the crowd and you reciprocate that and it just makes for a really memorable and explosive evening.

You just can’t explain the times where you go on stage and you feel great but meanwhile something happens where you come off stage and wonder, “What happened? The night before we had such and incredible show and tonight we had a sub-par show.” For the most part, it’s unexplainable. Each one of us prepare ourselves before we go out on stage. We do what we know has become our ritual in order to prepare us to be in our top form and nine times out of ten it works for us. We might have that tenth time that for whatever reason it just doesn’t want to cooperate.

But on that note, I think that the voice has been on my side [so far this tour] and I think I’m singing better in my career than I ever have. I will go so far even to say that the band is playing better than we ever have our entire career – right now. I think we all kind of feel that way.

www.dreamtheater.net

Thanks to Roadrunner Records

Photography by Tom Crenshaw; Atlanta, GA

RockOm Round-up is a quick glance at what's going on around the world in the areas of music and spirituality...

• Love me true: The spiritual quest of Elvis Presley - "Although Elvis' kingdom was very much of this world, he was also an ongoing seeker of those Kingdoms that aren't." (examiner.com)
• 40 years later, Woodstock’s spiritual vibes still resonate - "'A community grew out of Woodstock,' says organizer Michael Lang in his new book, The Road to Woodstock. 'A sense of possibility and hope was born and spread around the globe.' ... Rock historian Pete Fornatale goes further. 'I wanted to make the case that Woodstock was a spiritual experience." (religionnews.com)
• Is Music Sacred? - "As the most immaterial art, music is often thought to be the most spiritual. By its nature, is music sacred? If so, what is sacred about it? These might seem strange questions to ask in a secular age, but the presumption that there is something special about music pervades even our culture." (insidecatholic.com)

RockOm Round-up is a quick glance at what's going on around the world in the areas of music and spirituality...

• Pope Benedict tunes up for believers with first album - "Pope Benedict has a website, his own YouTube channel and he's on the social networking site Facebook -- now he's about to release his first album." (news.yahoo.com)
• Collective Soul pulls "Rabbit" out of its hat - Collective Soul's new album cover is a picture of a rabbit, which to them "means fertile. It's rebirth and all kinds of cool spiritual meanings." (reuters.com)
• Catching Up With... My Morning Jacket's Jim James - An interview with James of My Morning Jacket where he shares how the spirituality of George Harrison was "very inspiring" to him. (pastemagazine.com)

This week we're proud to introduce you to Sarah Hart, an excellent singer-songwriter whose new album merges the ancient wisdom of saints past with a modern, folksy pop sound.

Six years ago, Sarah Hart stumbled across the Anima Christi in an old prayer book her mother used as a child. Awed by the beauty of this ancient prayer, she set it to music, then began searching for more. The first collection of its kind, SaintSong is a contemporary montage featuring wisdom from saints throughout the ages.

“The process of creating this project allowed me to really deepen my Catholic faith, through the knowledge of these saints and their beautiful perspectives on God,” says Hart. “My hope is that maybe it will do the same for others.”

The CD presents 12 brand new compositions in Sarah’s signature folk-pop style. Texts include poems, prayers and other writings by some of the Church’s most revered doctors and theologians. St. Augustine figures prominently, as do women mystics like Catherine of Siena, Hildegard of Bingen and Mechthild of Magdeburg.

With sub-sections inspired by lectio divina, the ancient Benedictine method of praying with texts, each song becomes a devotional and catechetical exercise. The CD is enhanced with a prayer guide that directs the listener through four steps: Read, Reflect, Respond and Rest. “Read” features the complete song text along with a short bio of the saintly author. In “Reflect,” Sarah shares her personal thoughts on the text. “Respond” is a prayer or petition inspired by the text, while “Rest” offers a theme for meditation.

The devotional content and songs combine for a powerful resource for personal prayer and more. Offering several songs for use in the liturgy, SaintSong is great for youth and young adult ministries, retreats, sacramental preparation, and prayer services.

Sarah discusses the music of SaintSong in short videos available for viewing at www.spiritandsong.com/saintsong. Visitors to the site can also hear full-length versions of 11 songs and purchase the enhanced CD, offered at $18.00.

About spiritandsong.com
spiritandsong.com, a division of OCP, offers the latest releases by both big-name artists and emerging new talents. OCP, a not-for-profit publisher of music and worship resources based in Portland, Oregon, has been in operation for more than 80 years. Worship materials produced by OCP are used in thousands of churches in the United States and are distributed worldwide. More information is available at ocp.org.

Source: Press release by spiritandsong.com

By Sarah Hart

Sarah on spiritandsong.com
About SaintSong

Six years ago, Sarah Hart stumbled across the Anima Christi in an old prayer book her mother used as a child. Awed by the beauty of this ancient prayer, she set it to music, then began searching for more. The first collection of its kind, her new album SaintSong is a contemporary montage featuring wisdom from saints throughout the ages.

"O Sacred Breath"

"This text was written in the 1100s by Hildegard of Bingen. She used words that I never really thought about before - "comforting fire, life in the very life of all creation, so holy as you anoint us." Her words are so mystical about the Holy Spirit and I had never heard it put that way. As soon as I heard that text I wanted to whittle it down and set it to music right away." (Sarah Hart)

Click to play

The best in contemporary Catholic music gathered on Friday, Dec. 5 at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for “Rock Out Poverty,” a benefit event for struggling families and individuals in the Cleveland area. Award-winning artists like Steve Angrisano, ValLimar Jansen and Matt Maher were among the many performers who contributed their talents for the concert. All the musicians who participated are affiliated with spiritandsong.com, OCP’s contemporary music division.

“Times are tough and getting tougher, and people are feeling that pinch,” said Sarah Hart (pictured), one of the popular artists who took the stage. “Jesus said the greatest commandment after loving God was to love our neighbor. This is a wonderful opportunity to let those neighbors who need a hand know that they are not alone and that they are loved.”

All goals for the charity event were met or exceeded. Many of the thousands of people in Cleveland for the National Conference on Catholic Youth Ministry made their way from the Convention Center to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The 1,000 pre-sale tickets were sold out and over 200 additional tickets were sold at the door. After the first set at the concert, a check for $10,000 was presented to Catholic Charities of Cleveland by event co-sponsors spiritandsong.com, RCL Benzinger, the Diocese of Cleveland’s Youth and Young Adult Ministry and Catholic Youth Organization office.

Other top artists who took the stage were Josh Blakesley, Tom Booth, Santiago Fernández, Curtis Stephan, Jesse Manibusan and Who Do You Say I Am.

“I’m thankful to even be part of such an honorable event among so many great artists,” said Blakesley. “It’s the least I could do for such a deserving cause and I’m grateful I could help make a difference.”

The “Rock Out Poverty” fundraiser is just one of the many programs OCP has sponsored or created to serve the greater Catholic community. OCP gives time and resources to a number of different causes, including the following:

* Parish Grants - Since this program’s inception in 2001, more than 450 churches in total have been awarded over $900,000. Parishes in every U.S. diocese have received funds for the purpose of enhancing the worship experience.
* Christmas Giving - Each year, OCP’s Christmas Giving Committee focuses on finding charities in need of extra help around the holidays. Last year, OCP employees donated nearly 5,000 pounds of food to the Oregon Food Bank.

For more information on “Rock Out Poverty,” visit spiritandsong.com/spirit/spot/20081206. Learn more about OCP’s other charitable programs at ocp.org/about/community.

About OCP

OCP, a not-for-profit publisher of liturgical music and worship resources based in Portland, Oregon, has been in operation for more than 80 years. Worship programs produced by OCP are used in two-thirds of Catholic churches in the United States and are distributed worldwide.

This past weekend, a classical music concert was held in Castel Gandolfo for Pope Benedict XVI, where "Winter Journey" by Franz Schubert was performed, one of his favorite pieces. Following the performance, the Pope thanked the performers and shared the following profound words of wisdom regarding how music (in this case by Schubert) "transmits the profound experiences of the soul":

"'When Schubert brings a poetic text into his universe of sound, he performs it through a melodic link that penetrates the soul with sweetness, bringing the listener to feel his same nostalgic consummation, the same call of that truth of the heart that goes beyond all rationality. In this way a picture is born that speaks of genuine everyday life, of nostalgia, of introspection and of the future,' the Holy Father continued... The spontaneous and exuberant young Schubert was successful in communicating - to us here tonight as well - what he lived and experienced." (CNA, see whole article here)

YOUR TURN: Is there a particular song or piece that, for you, is like an open window into the artist's heart, feelings or story? A song that successfully communicates the yearning, sadness or joy that the artist was experiencing, thereby transmitting those feelings to the listener in a profound and empathetic way?

One of the best known composers of music for prayer and worship, Dan Schutte counts “Here I Am, Lord,” “City of God” and “Sing a New Song” among his celebrated works from years of collaboration with the St. Louis Jesuits. Now liturgists, musicians and communities seeking a renewal of faith through music and prayer are discovering the inspiring power of a concert or workshop with Schutte.

“While my evening events are often advertised as a concert, they are quite different from most concerts,” says Schutte. “At the conclusion of these evenings, people often comment that they feel like they’ve been on retreat. I’m glad when that’s what they experience. These ‘concerts’ are a combination of music, stories and reflections on our common journey of faith.”

Schutte’s music continues to be part of the standard repertoire for Christian worship worldwide. He is one of the best-known, most prolific and influential composers of Catholic music for the liturgy. Table of Plenty, an anthology of favorite Schutte songs published from 1985 to 2000, is slated for release in the fall.

“A Dan Schutte concert unites generations in song,” says Ken Canedo, youth ministry advisor for Holy Trinity Church in Beaverton, Ore. “Today’s teens are still singing ‘Here I Am, Lord’ and ‘City of God,’ just like their parents did. Dan’s spirituality and musicianship ground the event, but he also knows when to step back and let his audience carry the singing.”

“We attach graced memories to Dan Schutte’s songs: First Communion, Confirmation, youth ministry, weddings, RCIA,” continues Canedo. “An audience walks home from his concerts with new memories as the People of God united in song.”

These events are rare opportunities to tap into the experience of an award-winning liturgical music legend. Worship communities interested in booking Schutte for a concert or workshop should contact OCP Events at 1-800-548-8749 or events@ocp.org.

About OCP
OCP (www.OCP.org), a not-for-profit publisher of liturgical music and worship resources based in Portland, Oregon, has been in operation for more than 80 years. Worship programs produced by OCP are used in two-thirds of Catholic churches in the United States and are distributed worldwide.