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December 2002 Table of Contents
Musical Insights
David T. Clydesdale
For the past ten years, Word Music has been connected with the music of David T. Clydesdale. To celebrate the tenth anniversary of their partnership, we took the opportunity to sit down and talk with the arranger about his career. Be sure to read the end of the article for an extra special opportunity for Communicator readers! Word Music, David T. Clydesdale and The Communicator are proud to present this exclusive look at the creative mind of David T. Clydesdale.
TC: You're celebrating your ten-year anniversary with Word Music this year. How did this relationship begin? Do you have any special memories you can share with our readers about your long-standing relationship with Word?
DTC: My relationship with Word Music began in a time of many changes and transitions. Celeste and I had met in Nashville over twenty years ago, and were married in 1982. Ten years later, in 1992 we both felt God calling us to something new, something different. After prayer, fasting and really seeking direction, we left the comfort zone of Nashville for a new, and different life in California. The day we moved, August 1, 1992 - we also began our new relationship with Word Music. They were willing to take this "risk" with us. Within two years, Celeste began her writing, and the company name was changed from David T. Clydesdale Music to Clydesdale & Clydesdale Music. Little did we know what the Lord would have in store for us!
TC: How did your career in church music begin? When did you decide that this was what God wanted you to do with your life?
DTC: When I was 14 years old, I sent a song I wrote into John Peterson at Singspiration Music. He actually bought the song for $15.00 and assigned Don Wyrtzen to be the editor on it...and the journey began. College led me to Wheaton, where I was a cello and composition major for the next four years. Immediately after college, I took a position in Lincoln, Nebraska with a little known radio program called the Back to the Bible Broadcast. I played piano daily for the broadcast and arranged their music. My association with Don Wyrtzen back at 14 years old would come back again when he offered me a position with Singspiration as a youth writer. You're probably too young to remember... Imagination, Beyond Imagination, Dreamin' and Dreamin' Again were my first books for them. I moved to Nashville a few years later wanting to write adult musicals-not just teen books-and it all came together with The Day He Wore My Crown. Eighty-five books later, I'm not exactly sure what happened, but God has been so good!
TC: There have been many innovations and shifts in music ministry philosophy over the last ten years. How do you see both church music and your future projects changing over the next decade?
DTC: I don't chase contemporary culture, but I DO stay in tune with new sounds and new colors, and try to stay fresh by working with different writers, lyricists, and creative people. I hear new sounds on the radio, or in film scores and I store them in the back of my head, just waiting for an opportunity to creatively use them. The message of the Gospel doesn't ever change-but making that message relevant to the contemporary listener does.
TC: What was the inspiration for your new ministry musical Evidence of Grace?
DTC: I created an octavo several years ago with writer, Steve Moore, titled I'm Forever Grateful. In it, we took that great song, and put three short stories with it, and it really came to life. I asked my friends at Word Music, "How can we expand that concept to a full 50-minute musical?" The result is Evidence of Grace. This ministry musical is truly a worship experience that shows how God's grace continues to hold us in the palm of His hand, no matter how fierce the storm, how high the mountain... it is undeserved...but it is always there.
TC: Tell us about the stand-out songs and moments in Evidence of Grace. Do any of them carry a deeper personal meaning for you?
DTC: Evidence of Grace is a journey. There are extreme moments of joy and celebration, gentle moments of reflection and confession, and powerful moments of worship and adoration. Without a doubt, the highlight is the song, "I Can Only Imagine," and if the song were not powerful enough by itself, Alan Carter and Steve Moore created an awesome video that plays on the DVD. Every time I see that video, I break down...it's POWERFUL! I can't wait for the first time I get to see this presented in a service.
TC: With such a strong theme throughout the musical, some of our readers might be tempted to pigeonhole Evidence of Grace for a specific listener. Who do you see as the audience for the musical and what is your hope for the people who experience it?
DTC: God's grace is amazing, and when you hear these songs, the touching testimonies, and the impact of the visuals on the DVD that go with it, you can't help, whatever age, background, or denomination to be greatly moved. As the song says, "Your Grace Still Amazes Me." Thank you for the opportunity to minister together.
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