Music Changes Everything

(PC-Daniel Piker)
There is something so amazing to me about music and how it changes the atmosphere. I'm sitting here listening to Billie Holiday, typing these words and feeling that all is right in the world, simply because she is serenading me while I blog about music in my life.   
“Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything.” ― Plato   I woke up this morning thinking about how grateful I am for the power of music, and how it has built and shaped me.
I grew up in a very musical household.
My dad was a DJ for close to 30 years of his early career. My favorite stories are those recollections of when he met several famous people up in Lake Tahoe from interviewing them over the years. His record collection is beyond amazing because of the years in the music industry.
There was ALWAYS music on in the Pellant house, and often times he would have us kids come to work with him and do commercial spots or just chill there with him while he spun his discs round and round. Because of his love for music and artists, I soon became a big jazz music fan. My dad comes alive when jazz music is playing in the background.  As a young girl I remember thinking how happy it made me to see him tapping his foot or bobbing his head to the tunes from Louie, Ella, or Billie.
“A painter paints pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence.” ― Leopold Stokowski
My mom comes from a musically talented family that to this day just amazes me. I remember her parents, my grandparents, singing and playing the organ and accordion all the time. There was always a show happening in the LeSage home.  My LeSage grandparents wrote songs together that thanks to my Uncle Gene we still have recorded and can now treasure for years to come.

My mom used to be in a band with her 3 brothers and would tell stories of singing in front of people even though she was incredibly shy. My Uncle Gene can sing in a tone that you would swear Elvis is Still in the building, and my Uncle Jimmy... well he's without a doubt a musical genius.
You can sing just about any tune to my Uncle Jimmy and even if he has never heard a lick of the song before in his life, his fingers get to working on the piano, and they get going so effortlessly that you would think in a matter of minutes he not only has played the song before, but that maybe he should have written and composed it himself because he will add licks and sounds that make it sound even better than the original ! In all of my life I have never met a more talented musician than my Uncle Gene and Uncle Jimmy.
“If I were not a physicist, I would probably be a musician. I often think in music. I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music.” ―Albert Einstein 
With all this talent and appreciation for music is it any wonder that young Noël found herself singing to her moms records of Karen Carpenter's songs for hours and hours just to sound like one of her mom's favorite singers?   Early on it was evident that I loved to sing.
Fun fact for ya- I took 7 years of voice lessons from Mr. Peebles in Carson City, and soon started to have solos and parts in musicals that still to this day I look back on in awe that I was able to do that.  I can carry a tune without a doubt, but performing was not my jam. Like my mom, I was terribly shy and often times when I would stand in front of an audience I would look out from the stage and think ...  "What the HELL am I doing up here?"
Needless to say, that extreme shy quality was indeed a hinderance in further pursuing a life of music and performing. Thankfully, in my early teen years I came to know the lover of my soul and singing to him ... well that's a different story. 
 “Without music to decorate it, time is just a bunch of boring production deadlines or dates by which bills must be paid.” ― Frank Zappa

Fast forward to present day, where I received one of the most amazing gifts a momma can receive ... a song from my oldest about lil ole me. 

What a gift!! I was a weepy hot mess of course after listening to the words, and the sound of her voice singing of days gone by. I look everyday for new songs created by my oldest daughter who lives in Seattle now. I search high and low on all her social media outlets, just longing for the sound of her voice. I wonder how in the world did this come to be, that she isn't afraid of the audience.  She is so brave in her pursuit for authentic songs that tell her story. My son Solomon has now taken on the hobby of making music on his computer and although he is very private and shy about his musical talent much like his momma, when he does share one of his creations I jump up and down on the inside with giddy school girl excitement. My son Isaiah plays the saxophone and piano and has a gorgeous manly man voice that truly astounds me.  And even Chloe who doesn't like to be recognized for her musical talent can truly carry a tune with all the rest of us and has such a beautiful voice as well.  
I can hardly believe that my DNA produced 4 kids who have this appreciation for music,and more talent musically than I have in my pinky finger. I hope and pray the musical gene continues to go on for generations to come. 
I suppose this blog is a bit indulgent, and there really isn't a moral to this story except to say,  That music truly does change everything!
So don't deprive yourself any longer...  
"Girl(or boy)put your records on" 
Sing and dance and let the soul have a reprieve from it all.