Fantine: Never Stop Dreaming

Happy Thursday! Today comes part two in my Les Mis on Life collection. Today, I want to talk about the most touching character, Fantine. To me, Fantine represents perseverance in the deepest, most enduring way possible. She represents the human ability to never stop dreaming, no matter how dreary life may become. In Fantine's life she was a budding youth stricken by love. Her days were filled with endless wonder. But her love took her childhood in his stride when he left. He did leave her one thing though, a little girl that Fantine never ceased to love and protect. While Cosette may not have lived with her mother, Fantine worked hard in Valjean's factory to provide for her daughter. After she loses her job, she gets desperate, but doesn't stop dreaming of a better tomorrow. She still takes care of Cosette by sinking to becoming a prostitute to pay for Cosette's stay at the Thenardiers' inn. Even after all these atrocities have destroyed her life, she still had the courage to belt "And still I dream he'd come to me and we will live the years together" (True fans just sang it in their heads). Even though she knows this dream can never be, she still weathers her life's storms. She's always looking for a better life for her darling Cosette. Even in her final words, she is still caring for her daughter, giving her the best chance at happiness. Isn't that all we really want? One more day to be happy. One more shot at living our dreams. So don't be afraid to chase after what you want and most importantly, don't be afraid to Dream the Dream.

Jean Valjean

Today marks the beginning of a 5-part blog series of ideas on society inspired and represented by characters from the Broadway classic, Les Miserables. My first topic is Jean Valjean. "Who Am I?" isn't just a remarkable piece of music, it's a question we all ask ourselves. Who am I? Where do I fit in society? What's my type? My label? If you haven't felt this yourself, get on Facebook. Within 5 minutes you'll probably find as many instances of people going through this important conundrum. I've asked myself these same questions before, but after some pondering I've decided that it doesn't matter who you are, your societal stature, your clique, or your label. It only matters that you are who you are in that moment. You don't have to fit into a certain category in society. You are who you are and you're perfect for it. If you're with your friends and feeling on-top-of-the-world, then you're a mountain climber. If you're feeling squashed, you resemble a prisoner. If you feel unimportant, you're an imp. But what matters is that you are you and there's nobody better for you to be. You have to love yourself even when it's hard, because if you can't accept you, nobody else can either. Look at Valjean for instance. He was a pauper, then a thief, then a prisoner, then a parolee, then a fugitive, then an aristocrat, a mayor, a fugitive again, a father, a revolutionary, a father-in-law, and in the end an honest man. He had more radical change in his life than the rest of us will probably ever face. But he never stopped respecting himself. He may have asked himself "Who Am I?" but "At The End Of The Day" he said "I'm Jean Valjean" and that was good enough for him. (3 Les Mis references in one sentence isn't bad, eh?) So just like Valjean, it's time we all stop asking ourselves who we should be and start respecting ourselves for who we are in the moment.

Hard Work Vs. Talent

A thought occurred to me the other day upon entering the choir room at my High School. I walked in and immediately my director handed me a piece of music and told me to start working on it. I was beginning to feel very overwhelmed about all the music I have to prepare for Contest this spring. With taking a saxophone solo and ensemble, a vocal ensemble, plus music for my large ensembles I participate in, it's not surprising this new piece wasn't exactly exciting for me. I expressed my concern about preparing so much music and she knowingly replied "Oh I understand. That's what happens when you're talented!" It's that statement that got me thinking.

What's the difference between talent and hard work? I don't consider myself and exceptionally talented individual because I know how hard I have to work to make a piece of music speak the way I want. Merriam Webster dictionary defines talent as " a special ability that allows someone to do something well." My personal definition expands on this a bit. I fee like talent gives someone the ability to do something well with little rehearsal and exposure to the task. Everyone knows somebody like this (you know the person in your life). There's always that person that no matter what they try, they succeed almost immediately. The rest of us though have to remember to work hard always. It's important to remember that just because someone has a natural talent in certain area, doesn't mean they have a divine right to it. So to all you hard workers out there, just keep doing what you're doing and you'll get there all the same and be a better person because of it.

Musically,
William Miller

A Little MLK Day Inspiration

Hello Blog world!

I know my blog may be called Musical Musings (don't worry there are many music-themed blogs in the future), but today I decided to pay tribute to Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. King's famous "I Have a Dream" speech is a common household title, but how many people have actually seen it? How many even know what it is? Today in my High School Psychology class, I watched the whole thing for the first time and found out that the "I Have a Dream" portion is just the charismatic conclusion to a longer work that is equally profound and fascinating. So here's what I gathered today.

MLK talks a lot about the passing of time in his speech. He opens with a brief history of emancipation and a moment of appreciation for
President Lincoln before leaping into the "100 Years Later" theme. He talks about how "100 years later, the Negro is still not free... an exile in his own land." Then he speaks out against the injustices of the government-controlled oppression of African Americans. He says America has defaulted on its promissory note of the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Then he moves to the present. "Now is the time!" he says. He's showing that August 28, 1963 was the lighting of a fire which "can never be satisfied" as long as African Americans are beaten, rejected, and oppressed. Then, in the well-known "I Have a Dream" portion, Dr. King looks to the future, and that future is now. Because of Dr. King's work, any child can now take the hand of another.

His greatest contribution, though, wasn't to the rights of African Americans alone. He helped all Americans by setting a precedent of speaking out against injustice. He knew that he was the centerpiece of "the greatest demonstration for freedom in American History", but I don't feel like he truly knew the scope of how inspirational he would be, not just to a race, but to all oppressed Americans. He founded a culture of peaceful protest as a way to change society. His message is timeless, current even to this day. The oppressed people of the 20-teens are usually considered the LGBT community, and I see the comparison. Dr. King's teachings haven't been forgotten in that movement either. As Macklemore says "It's the same fight that led people to walk-outs and sit-ins. It's human rights for everybody." No matter what kind of oppression any group may face, I hope Dr. King's words offer hope and encouragement to them. There's no need for violence, looting, arson, and theft. The best way to find change, as shown by Dr. King, is to embrace peace. So here's my official tip-of-the-hat to Dr. King and his work. I hope that his words can touch you as much as they did for me.

Musically,
William Miller