Twiddling my Fingers

I started taking piano lessons when I was about 8 years old.  From the very beginning, I remember my dad telling me things like "you'll be able to play in church your whole life."

Today's topic: was this prophesy a blessing or a curse?

I started playing the piano for priesthood when I was probably about 13, and did so until I left for college, about 4 years later.  So, 1 hymn a week, 48 weeks a year for 4 years gives 192 songs.  At first, it was the same half dozen songs on a loop, but I gradually branched out, which was good for when I started going to seminary.

Despite growing up in Zion, in 4 years I never had someone else in my seminary class who would admit to playing the piano.  Statistically, it's hard to imagine that no one else in those classes could play.  (C'mon, 100 Mormons and not a single one that plays the piano?)  Well, I guess Tracy could play "I Stand All Amazed" so for one year (1 semester?) I didn't have to play that one.  Accounting for a few absences, assemblies and Tracy, we'll cut that down to 150 hymns a year for 4 years, for another 600.

As a missionary, I played in the MTC and in 4 of my 5 areas for church.  So, we'll call that 83 weeks of 3 songs a week (I don't remember rest hymns on my mission) for 249 more.  I played for the choir in one ward.  I also played for every missionary conference, musical fireside, etc for 2 years.  This number is more fuzzy, but I'm going to claim credit for another 100 songs.  Oh, and I provided the piano for 1 1/2 CDs, too, so throw on another 20 for good measure.

Amazingly, as a single guy in Provo, I almost never played the piano for anything.  It's really quite curious that I have been playing the piano more or less continuously for nearly 20 years in every single ward, branch, seminary class, whatever, except for my 3 single student wards in Provo.  Once I got married, all bets were off.  1 year as an organist: 3.5 x 48 = 168.

That was immediately followed by a year as a choir accompanist.  I'm not sure how to best count playing for the choir.  We only perform for the ward about once a month, but we have practice every week.  I only play one song per week, but I do play it over and over again.  I'm going to claim credit for 3 "songs" per week while playing for the choir.  Some of those songs are hard.  So, 40 weeks per year (choirs take weeks off occasionally) x 3 = 120.

We went to my parents house for a few months, so I got some time off before we went to St. George, where within a month or two, I was playing for the choir again.  2 years there gives 240 more songs.  At this point, special musical numbers in church are just an extra throw in that I don't even charge for.  We bought a house in St. George, and moved wards, where it took only a month or two before I was choir pianist again.  2 more years, 240 more songs.

Then we went to Michigan.  One of our very first weeks there, we went to choir, and they mentioned that the accompanist was moving, and they weren't sure who would play the piano for them.  2 or 3 weeks later, I started my next stint playing for the choir.  So, another 2.5 years and 300 songs.

(Lest people nit-pick my life story here, it was probably only 9 months in Provo, and our two stops in St. George were about 24 and 25 months, so the one and two months it took before I was called leave things a bit short of the 1 and 2 years I'm claiming.  But, we were in Michigan 2 years and 10 months, so that evens things out a bit.  Also, remember those special musical numbers I threw in for free?)

We've now landed in Illinois, where I haven't had a calling for 4 months.  (That doesn't mean that I still didn't accompany the women's half (or three quarters) of the choir, and a Shanny solo for the Christmas program.)  Well, to the surprise of almost no one (other than the choir director) I'm the new choir accompanist.

As you've been adding up all these numbers, you see that I'm now somewhere around 2,229 songs into my accompanying career in church.  Yes dad, those piano lessons have paid off.  I really don't mind playing for the choir, though it's been nice to have a break for a few months from playing.  I'll keep on playing as long as there are Bishops to keep calling me, but I do have one rule that I had to institute a number of years ago: I don't pick hymns anymore.  I've picked them all so many times.  I can play way more of them than most people know, so if you need someone to play a hymn for you, I'm glad to do it, but you pick it.