As most of you know, I used to have a playlist on the blog before Mixpod.com shut their website down. A few of my blog readers suggested doing a post with all of my playlist tracks in it, which I thought was a great idea. I thought it would be an even better idea to link it to my pages up top so you can find it easily. So in the future, you'll find a link to this post on the "Beast'sbelle's Favorites & Playlist" Page up top. :)
Unfortunately, I waited a little too long to do this post, so I've forgotten a lot of the tracks I had on there. :} I figure this will be another "in progress" page. I'll add more songs as I think of them. :) If there's one in particular that I didn't add and you'd like to hear it again, leave me a comment. Here are the ones I can remember for now:
Former Blog Playlist Tracks:
-Song of Hope Duet from Lord of the Rings the Musical
-The Road Goes On from Lord of the Rings the Musical
-Now and For Always from Lord of the Rings the Musical
-One Fine Day by Hayley Westenra
-The Flower Duet by Charlotte Church
-Main Aagar Kahoon from Om Shanti Om
-Aankhon Mein Teri from Om Shanti Om
-Tere Liye from Veer-Zaara
-Frank Churchill Arrives from Emma (1996)
-The Dance from Emma (1996)
-End Titles from Emma (1996)
-Main Titles from Emma (2009)
-The Last Dance from Emma (2009)
After I started this, I thought it would be fun to share some of my other favorite songs. The following songs are divided by category. :)
Housecleaning Music:
These are songs that are a little more upbeat that help me fold laundry, do dishes, sweep, or anything else that requires a bit of physical exertion. Of course, sometimes I have to remind myself to focus and not get too distracted dancing to the music (in my own awkward, uncoordinated way!), especially when I'm listening to the Bollywood tracks! :} [Note: some of these songs come from movies that I don't necessarily completely recommend, but the songs themselves are fun and enjoyable.]
-The Medley from Mujhse Dosti Karoge
-The Cat and the Moon from Lord of the Rings the Musical
-Lodi from Veer-Zaara
-Saj Daj Ke from Mausam
-Haule Haule from Rab Ne Bana di Jodi
-Koi Ladki Hai from Dil to Pagal Hai
-Soni Soni from Mohabbatein
-The Cowman and the Farmer Should be Friends from Oklahoma
-Comme Facette Mammeta by Mario Frangoulis (you can't help but feel happy when you hear this song!) ;)
-Any bluegrass music :)
Story Writing Music:
These are songs I listen to while working on my books. They are often songs I've picked because they have a message or theme that fits into different parts of the story line. Either that, or they are chosen to help me feel specific emotions. For example, when I'm writing a sad scene, I listen to sad music to help me feel what my characters are feeling. [Once again, some of these songs come from movies that I either haven't seen or can't recommend, but serve their purpose for my story.] Here are a few of my favorite story writing tracks:
-Non ti Scordar di Me by Russell Watson (couldn't find his version, but here's Mario Frangoulis' version. I prefer Mario's voice, but I just love the instrumental part of Russell's version! It's much more haunting.)
-All Love Can Be by Charlotte Church (this one is set to pictures, and some of them are an odd choice...especially the walrus towards the end!) :}
-Remember Me by Josh Groban
-My Immortal by Evanescence (I'm not a fan of all of their stuff, and I don't care for the version of this song with the electric guitar. I also would not recommend listening to a sad song like this all the time, but I use it to get me in the right mindset for the sadder parts of my stories.)
-The Swedish Rhapsody by Hugo Alfven
-Dulaman by Celtic Woman
-In Her Eyes by Josh Groban
-Any instrumental Celtic music
-anything by Hayley Westenra
-The entire "Let My Life be a Light" CD by the Wissmann family (this link has one of my favorite songs from the CD)
Christian Music:
Here are a few of my favorite more contemporary Christan songs that I enjoy (well, as contemporary as I get...my music tastes are pretty conservative). ;)
-How Deep the Father's Love for Us performed by Fernando Ortega
-In Christ Alone performed here by Keith and Kristyn Getty (my favorite version is the one done by the Wissmann family)
-Calvary's Love performed by Steve Green
-Children of the Living God performed by Fernando Ortega
--I Will Carry You by Selah
-Cinderella by Steven Curtis Chapman
Hymns:
I grew up (and am still attending) a very conservative church, so I've had years of listening to the great old hymns of the faith. I love these hymns because of their depth and because of the amazing stories that are behind them. I was able to find several of my favorites to share with you:
-It is Well With My Soul by Horatio G. Spafford
-My Savior First of All by Fanny Crosby
-Take My Life and Let it Be by Frances Ridley Havergal
-I Will Sing of My Redeemer by Philip Bliss
-Sweet Hour of Prayer by William Walford
-Have Thine Own Way by Adelaide A. Pollard
-Just As I Am by Charlotte Elliot
-Face to Face by Fanny Crosby (couldn't find this one on YouTube)
Like I said, this is a list that will grow and change with time, so keep checking back for updates. :)
Showing posts with label hymns. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hymns. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Sunday, September 2, 2012
Be Careful What You Pray For
Today I messed up.
It was nothing too earth-shattering. I was in the middle of a solo in front of the church, and during the last verse of the song, my voice suddenly cracked.
It's a moment I dread as a singer. There's nothing more frustrating than having your "instrument" give out on you right in the middle of your performance. :} But what can you do? I gave a little smile, patted my throat humorously, and continued singing...and thankfully got through the rest of the song without any further incidents.
It's funny. In my younger years, a scenario like that would have been completely humiliating. Today, I just had to chuckle inwardly. You see, before I went up to sing, I prayed, as I usually do (it's a great way to calm those nerves!). In my prayer today, though, I asked the Lord to make the performance about Him, and not about me.
I think the Lord has a sense of humor...and perhaps He wanted to see if I meant what I had prayed. And I must confess, after what happened, I really had to examine my heart. Had I really meant it?
Think about it...was one little mistake enough to negate the message of the song? No. In fact, I had more people than usual thank me for the music this morning. Apparently the only person affected by it was me. And that's just pride, plain and simple.
I find that it's easy to get puffed up when I sing well. I say it's all about the Lord, and I do honestly desire to serve Him with my music. But deep down, I love getting the complements and affirmation that come from a job well-done. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but it shouldn't be my focus.
A morning like this one brings me back to what it's really all about, and that's my Savior. When people from the congregation came up and thanked me today, I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that the message of the song was what had blessed them, not my "magnificent" singing. ;)
The other thing that helped was that the words of the hymn I chose were so challenging and uplifting. I couldn't be upset when singing those words. I'd like to share them with you now:
"Something For Thee"
written by Sylvanus D. Phelps
verses 1, 3, and 4
1. Savior, Thy dying love
Thou gavest me,
Nor should I aught withhold,
Dear Lord, from Thee:
In love my soul would bow
My heart fulfill its vow,
Some off'ring bring Thee now,
Something for Thee.
3. Give me a faithful heart,
Likeness to Thee,
That each departing day
Henceforth may see
Some work of love begun,
Some deed of kindness done,
Some wand'rer sought and won,
Something for Thee.
4. All that I am and have,
Thy gifts so free-
In joy, in grief, thru life,
Dear Lord, for Thee!
And when Thy face I see,
My ransomed soul shall be,
Thru all eternity,
Something for thee.
I also sang the first verse of "My Jesus, I Love Thee". Not only was it in the same key and tempo, but the message went right along with what "Something for Thee" was saying.
"My Jesus, I Love Thee"
written by William R. Featherston
verse 1
My Jesus, I love Thee,
I know Thou art mine-
For Thee all the follies
of sin I resign,
My gracious Redeemer,
My Savior art Thou:
If ever I loved Thee,
My Jesus, 'tis now.
This is why I sing. Not for man's praise (although that's pretty nice, too), ;) not to feel good about myself, but to glorify the One who has given me everything. Because of all He has done, my response should be to offer my time, my talents, and my life to Him. My desire should be to bring glory to His name. And if having my voice crack in the middle of a performance is the best way to do that, then who am I to argue? ;)
It was nothing too earth-shattering. I was in the middle of a solo in front of the church, and during the last verse of the song, my voice suddenly cracked.
It's a moment I dread as a singer. There's nothing more frustrating than having your "instrument" give out on you right in the middle of your performance. :} But what can you do? I gave a little smile, patted my throat humorously, and continued singing...and thankfully got through the rest of the song without any further incidents.
It's funny. In my younger years, a scenario like that would have been completely humiliating. Today, I just had to chuckle inwardly. You see, before I went up to sing, I prayed, as I usually do (it's a great way to calm those nerves!). In my prayer today, though, I asked the Lord to make the performance about Him, and not about me.
I think the Lord has a sense of humor...and perhaps He wanted to see if I meant what I had prayed. And I must confess, after what happened, I really had to examine my heart. Had I really meant it?
Think about it...was one little mistake enough to negate the message of the song? No. In fact, I had more people than usual thank me for the music this morning. Apparently the only person affected by it was me. And that's just pride, plain and simple.
I find that it's easy to get puffed up when I sing well. I say it's all about the Lord, and I do honestly desire to serve Him with my music. But deep down, I love getting the complements and affirmation that come from a job well-done. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but it shouldn't be my focus.
A morning like this one brings me back to what it's really all about, and that's my Savior. When people from the congregation came up and thanked me today, I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that the message of the song was what had blessed them, not my "magnificent" singing. ;)
The other thing that helped was that the words of the hymn I chose were so challenging and uplifting. I couldn't be upset when singing those words. I'd like to share them with you now:
"Something For Thee"
written by Sylvanus D. Phelps
verses 1, 3, and 4
1. Savior, Thy dying love
Thou gavest me,
Nor should I aught withhold,
Dear Lord, from Thee:
In love my soul would bow
My heart fulfill its vow,
Some off'ring bring Thee now,
Something for Thee.
3. Give me a faithful heart,
Likeness to Thee,
That each departing day
Henceforth may see
Some work of love begun,
Some deed of kindness done,
Some wand'rer sought and won,
Something for Thee.
4. All that I am and have,
Thy gifts so free-
In joy, in grief, thru life,
Dear Lord, for Thee!
And when Thy face I see,
My ransomed soul shall be,
Thru all eternity,
Something for thee.
I also sang the first verse of "My Jesus, I Love Thee". Not only was it in the same key and tempo, but the message went right along with what "Something for Thee" was saying.
"My Jesus, I Love Thee"
written by William R. Featherston
verse 1
My Jesus, I love Thee,
I know Thou art mine-
For Thee all the follies
of sin I resign,
My gracious Redeemer,
My Savior art Thou:
If ever I loved Thee,
My Jesus, 'tis now.
This is why I sing. Not for man's praise (although that's pretty nice, too), ;) not to feel good about myself, but to glorify the One who has given me everything. Because of all He has done, my response should be to offer my time, my talents, and my life to Him. My desire should be to bring glory to His name. And if having my voice crack in the middle of a performance is the best way to do that, then who am I to argue? ;)
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