The Beginning
During the fall of 2012, the Lord was working on my heart and bringing things together in my mind in preparation for this project. I shared the vision with Vinita Shaw of Disha Foundation, and she gave me her blessing to move forward.
I committed the month of January 2013 to the Lord for prayer and planning for this project as well as for my general music ministry. I know the Lord has used music in my life and to bless others in the past, so it makes sense that there would be spiritual warfare in the form of distractions or disruptions in my life. However, I was not expecting what happened on January 1, 2013. I had a sudden, unexplained back injury that landed me in bed for the month. Doctors were unable to diagnose the exact problem. After that month, I could only handle being out of bed for about an hour at a time. I very slowly worked back up to a normal routine as my back healed.
During that time, I realized that all the Lord had called me to do that month (in addition to normal responsibilities as a wife and a mom) was to pray and plan regarding my music ministry and this project. And it dawned on me that I could do this from my bed. Even though I struggled with doubt, fear, and depression during that time, I knew that no matter what I perceived my limitations to be, I could still do what God had called me to do. So I did. I spent those weeks laying flat on my back, with my laptop, clipboard, tons of paper and pencils as I brainstormed and planned away. It was a wonderful time and so fruitful. God met me there and was so good to me.
Once I was well enough to go to the hostel, we began voice training that lasted about three months. Most of the girls did not know how to match pitch. They thought the best singer was the loudest. I taught them how to listen to each other, how to listen to themselves, and how to match their voices to mine. It was quite amazing to hear the progress they made. In the group of 50+ girls, at the beginning of the training less than 10 could match pitch by repeating back a simple, sung melody. After the training, less than 5 were unable to match pitch! It was incredible and extremely satisfying to me as a music teacher. These girls worked so hard, and were always focused and dilligent in practicing, which produced amazing results.
It was time to begin learning the songs on the album. I grouped the girls according to ability, and the stronger singers were assigned more songs and additional harmony parts. I held auditions for solos and chose carefully. Most of the girls had limited English ability and heavy accents, so I also had to take this into consideration. Some were more difficult to understand when singing in English and we spent a good deal of time on singing with proper English diction as well.
The girls rehearsed their songs for many months before the recording in October 2013. In a later post, I will share about the exciting recording process. Starting with the next post on Thursday, 8 February, I will begin to highlight each song on the album and share more stories about the girls and women in India. Posts will go live every Monday and Thursday for the next several weeks. Please like and share so more people hear about our great God, and the wonderful work He has done in and through these girls.
The My God Will Hear Me album is available at many online stores and streaming services. All profits for purchased music goes to Disha Foundation to support the girls.
iTunes Store: http://itunes.apple.com/album/id1333650406?ls=1&app=itunes
Apple Music: http://itunes.apple.com/album/id/1333650406
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3Yh88dCAyaERWtzXXen39T?si=7jHY3RA4TpmWYQVEfJec6g
Amazon Music: https://www.amazon.com/My-God-Will-Hear-Me/dp/B078XKXXR3/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1516856743&sr=8-8&keywords=voices+of+disha
Promo Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ul-BrK2jKJA
Disha Foundation Website: dishafoundationindia.in
I committed the month of January 2013 to the Lord for prayer and planning for this project as well as for my general music ministry. I know the Lord has used music in my life and to bless others in the past, so it makes sense that there would be spiritual warfare in the form of distractions or disruptions in my life. However, I was not expecting what happened on January 1, 2013. I had a sudden, unexplained back injury that landed me in bed for the month. Doctors were unable to diagnose the exact problem. After that month, I could only handle being out of bed for about an hour at a time. I very slowly worked back up to a normal routine as my back healed.
During that time, I realized that all the Lord had called me to do that month (in addition to normal responsibilities as a wife and a mom) was to pray and plan regarding my music ministry and this project. And it dawned on me that I could do this from my bed. Even though I struggled with doubt, fear, and depression during that time, I knew that no matter what I perceived my limitations to be, I could still do what God had called me to do. So I did. I spent those weeks laying flat on my back, with my laptop, clipboard, tons of paper and pencils as I brainstormed and planned away. It was a wonderful time and so fruitful. God met me there and was so good to me.
Once I was well enough to go to the hostel, we began voice training that lasted about three months. Most of the girls did not know how to match pitch. They thought the best singer was the loudest. I taught them how to listen to each other, how to listen to themselves, and how to match their voices to mine. It was quite amazing to hear the progress they made. In the group of 50+ girls, at the beginning of the training less than 10 could match pitch by repeating back a simple, sung melody. After the training, less than 5 were unable to match pitch! It was incredible and extremely satisfying to me as a music teacher. These girls worked so hard, and were always focused and dilligent in practicing, which produced amazing results.
It was time to begin learning the songs on the album. I grouped the girls according to ability, and the stronger singers were assigned more songs and additional harmony parts. I held auditions for solos and chose carefully. Most of the girls had limited English ability and heavy accents, so I also had to take this into consideration. Some were more difficult to understand when singing in English and we spent a good deal of time on singing with proper English diction as well.
The girls rehearsed their songs for many months before the recording in October 2013. In a later post, I will share about the exciting recording process. Starting with the next post on Thursday, 8 February, I will begin to highlight each song on the album and share more stories about the girls and women in India. Posts will go live every Monday and Thursday for the next several weeks. Please like and share so more people hear about our great God, and the wonderful work He has done in and through these girls.
The My God Will Hear Me album is available at many online stores and streaming services. All profits for purchased music goes to Disha Foundation to support the girls.
iTunes Store: http://itunes.apple.com/album/id1333650406?ls=1&app=itunes
Apple Music: http://itunes.apple.com/album/id/1333650406
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3Yh88dCAyaERWtzXXen39T?si=7jHY3RA4TpmWYQVEfJec6g
Amazon Music: https://www.amazon.com/My-God-Will-Hear-Me/dp/B078XKXXR3/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1516856743&sr=8-8&keywords=voices+of+disha
Promo Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ul-BrK2jKJA
Disha Foundation Website: dishafoundationindia.in
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