Inspiration, Inspiration, Inspiration

I’ve struggled to write on this blog recently. Things have been pretty stressful in my personal life, and I find this has an impact on my writing. It’s hard to find inspiration to write about anything when there’s so much going on elsewhere. I can go for lengthy periods of time with no idea as to what to write on my blog but can find that, quite suddenly, sometimes an idea (or several) form in my head and I have to get it all down on paper before I forget. In minutes I can have the basis of a lengthy blog post.

And that’s where you find me, staring at a computer screen and aware that I’ve not written an original piece this year. I’m struggling to find inspiration. My mind wanders and I can hear Tony Blair in 1999; Inspiration inspiration…inspiration?

Inspiration: The action of inspiring; the fact or condition of being inspired; a breathing or infusion into the mind or soul.

I quite like the second part of the OED’s definition. Suddenly I’m thinking, what inspired me?

On the face of it a simple question – a top player? A top band? Actually, I’m not sure. My parents both play, I grew up in the Salvation Army where bands are a big thing, and when I was a kid my Dad was playing in various local town bands. As I got older I made friends in other bands and youth bands who were an encouragement, but I couldn’t put my finger on any one player or group and say “yes: they were the reason that I learned to play a brass instrument”.

It was, on reflection, a lot of bands, CD’s, DVD’s, people, places and circumstances that over time breathed or infused the love of brass playing into my soul. And it occurs to me now that as brass player (and to a much lesser degree blogger) I too am likely to be an influence on those around me. We all are. The things we do and say about banding are ultimately what will inspire people to want to be a part of it. Consciously or otherwise, our actions will influence and determine the future of the movement. As banding comes to grips with the post-pandemic world, and struggles to find its place in 21st Century society, it will be important to remember that no matter how much glossy advertising or funky social media posts we put out there, if we as people are not being a welcoming and positive influence, then we’ve fallen at the first hurdle. We need to think about how we breathe our love of banding, and music more generally, into the minds and souls of the next generation.