Message in “Frozen”

                                                       

                          

Recital in a Barn!

                      

      My keyboard teacher, Rosemary Koemmpel, usually plans a recital for her piano students in November, giving everyone plenty of time to learn a song or two before the day of the big event. She also chooses a theme for the program with at least one song which all of her students perform together, vocally, playing instruments, or both.

      This year’s theme was from “Frozen” after the animated Disney movie by the same name. The girls were going to sing “Let it Go,” a big hit with them, and the boys, “Frozen Heart,” also very popular. Rosemary asked if I would help with the group practices a few weeks before the recital by making sure that the kids knew the words to the songs and giving suggestions. My only involvement during the recital would be to play the left hand “strings” part to “Let it Go” on the keyboard. Whew!

      I listened to those two songs on the computer so many times that the words played round and round in my brain for days. Al and I decided to rent the movie, which turned out to be a good idea. I had formed an initial opinion about it after only hearing the lyrics to “Let it Go,” but changed my mind after seeing the movie.

      At first it seemed like an attitude of rebellion and indifference was being glorified in the central character, Princess Elsa, who was born with the power of turning anything she touched to ice. The older she got and the more fearful she became about this power, the stronger her “freezing” touch grew until it was out of control. However, there was a strong theme of love running through the movie and the ending was very happy!

     With the help of Rosemary’s husband and dedicated parents, one end of their spacious barn was transformed into a “snow cave” for the recital. People began filling the snow cave/barn around 3:00 p.m. until there were about one hundred folks sitting shoulder to shoulder. No danger of being cold as the temperature indoors began rising!

     To start off the program, all of Rosemary’s male students gathered on the center stage, with two of them at the keyboard.  The deeper voices sang out “Born of cold and winter air and mountain rains combining, this icy force both foul and fair has a frozen heart worth mining…” Their words were punctuated by the swish of sand blocks and the clanging of metal on metal. Three lucky boys got to use saws and a pick axe (carefully) on blocks of ice as they continued singing, “Cut through the heart cold and clear, strike for love and strike for fear, see the beauty strong and sheer, split the ice apart and break the frozen heart.”

      It was an impressive production, receiving a good ovation while the boys bowed and went to their seats. Each of Rosemary’s students, from six years old to late teens and beyond, then came to the front of the room to play a number on the piano or keyboard. Things went very smoothly and the hour flew by. Finally, all of the girls took the stage to sing “Let it Go,” accompanied by an accomplished young pianist and two of us on the Korg. It was a great ending to a wonderful afternoon, the result of many collective hours of practice and hard work.

     In the movie, “true love” was needed to break the power of Elsa’s icy curse. Let us be thankful for true love… Christ’s sacrificial gift of love for all mankind…which can change hearts and lives, break the chains of sin and set people free.

“Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.” Psalm 63:3-4 NIV