Full Restoration

"Full restoration" is a phrase that likely recalls the reinvigoration of classic cars, or someone bring a decades-old photo back to life. However, when applied to the human mind and spirit, these two simple words have much different and deeper meaning. In the spring of 2021 as the world continued to struggle with a pandemic, I was contacted by Brian Covey from Lockport Township High School in the suburbs of Chicago. His wind ensemble had been invited to perform at the 2020 Midwest Clinic, but the performance had to be postponed due to the world health situation. Now the pending performance was for 2021. He desired to commission a work that would close their program that be uplifting and offer both his musicians as well as the attendees an opportunity to celebrate being together again after a long hiatus. With this information I set to work to "find the music." As I always do at the beginning of writing a new work, I turned to God for guidance. This time it took longer than normal to figure out where God was leading me with this work. Throughout the entire summer of 2021 I prayed and thought deeply about the work. When I started writing I still was unsure of where the music would go. In the late summer as I sat in my office trying to find the notes that needed to be heard, I picked up my Bible. As I do sometimes, I began to flip through the pages reading miscellaneous passages. At times such as this I seek God to speak to me through His word. As He always does, He led me to the following passage: "Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you." 2 Corinthians 13:11. This passage spoke to me very quickly and deeply about the music I was working to write. Over the past 18 months we had all been through a challenging time, and humanity is challenged to remember that all is not lost, there are better days ahead. We should be thankful even while traversing these difficult times, always striving to work together to find a way to restore each other daily and into the future. With this clear guidance from God, the music really began to flow. The work opens with a brash fanfare as we enter life full of joy and excitement. As we continue, we flow through many different emotions, from darkness to light and all in between. Human life is many times a struggle, but finding the positive thing is important for a healthy outlook. Throughout the beginning of the work, we hear small motives from the opening fanfare as we struggle through challenging times. These motives symbolize the good that can easily be forgotten and skewed, but if we work to place our focus on the good, we can make it through the bad. There are two contemplative sections in the work where I was led to thought pictures of deep struggle. Each of us go through "seasons" during our time on Earth. For me the most meaningful of these seasons has always been when I assess deeply my life, my faith, my future, and reconfirm through my deep trust in God: His will for my life. These sections finally lead to a "welling up" of building emotion that leads us to the celebratory section based on the Bach Chorale #11 Jesu, nun sei gepreiset (Jesus, be praised now). Although this chorale is not used in its exact form, chosen phrases work to hopefully create a feeling of happiness when restoring our souls from the challenges of daily life. The work finishes with a faster section to offer even more celebration as we find the verse is fulfilling itself, in that God is with us in love and peace as we use His ultimate power to fully restore our souls each day.