When God gives you a gift you have two choices: Use it for your own glory or share it for His glory. The latter is better.
People often ask me what style of music I write. I usually tell them that I just write what God has inspired me to write and I let others determine what genre they think it is. Whether a ballad, a hymn, a mock film score or an upbeat dance song, the process remains the same. I try as hard as I can to write down what the Lord has given to me in the way He gave it to me.
After graduating from the United States Military Academy at West Point, I shifted my focus from pursuing music to civil engineering. Although I still played piano and wrote at least one new score each year, I eventually reached the point where I needed to return to my passion for music. A song I had performed while in the military, "Holiday Rag," allowed me to become a member of the American Society of Composers Authors and Publishers in the year 2000. Since that time I have begun marketing my music through direct sales. I now seek to establish myself on the internet and hopefully see a marked increase in sales from the exposure gained.
A more recent project, "Jody," that is based on a cadence theme familiar to each of the branches in the United States Armed Forces serves as a tribute to those who serve and have served to protect the freedoms we Americans enjoy. It is my hope that "Jody" will connect with servicemen and women as well as their families in a special way. Because it is reflective of the rigorous training that must precede combat, "Jody" will hopefully remind listeners of the people whose tireless effort and unquenchable spirit make it possible to live freely in the greatest country in the world.
Yes. As God enables me, I play piano, synthesizer and drums. I also sing. I like playing and singing to God's glory as part of a worship team. The special moments are when someone tells me that they were moved by what I was playing or singing. That's one way I sense the Spirit of God at work.
I like the music of John Williams, Gabriel Faure, Maurice Ravel and Georges Bizet. I like the style of Lionel Richie, Michael MacDonald, Philip Bailey, Rod Temperton, Christopher Cross, Neil Sadaka, Neil Diamond and Dan Fogelberg. The vocal arrangements by Richard Carpenter of The Carpenters has inspired me. I listen to a variety of Christian artists, but I don't have a particular favorite. I also like the piano artistry of George Winston.
I now record using Cakewalk Music Creator. I prefer scoring the music and having it played either by live musicians or by sequencer. As God provides, I hope to improve my recordings using better equipment and better techniques.
Dream Into Reality Music is a publisher member of ASCAP.
John Scott is a composer member of ASCAP.
Contact Sharon at (760) 522-8230 for booking.
Visit the Dream Into Reality website at www.soundcloud.com/dreamintoreality
