Voyage: An Interview with Christine Dente
Another Day Along the Way
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Another day,
Some songs provoke laughter. Humorous lyrics hit the chords of fun and entertainment. There's nothing wrong with a smile or fun. A few tunes can do that.
Other songs invite listeners into new worlds. They might trigger a smile or a deep breath or a question. They inspire thoughts. They reinforce beliefs. Repeating phrases doesn't just sell a product for a commercial or give a few lines you'll always recall. The expressions articulate mystery; the rhythm leads listeners into deeper, thought provoking moments of spiritual formation.
Voyage, Christine Dente's new CD, provides that type of music. Christine and her husband Scott became well-known as the group Out of the Grey. Now, years later, Christine's writing and voice team again with Scott's music and production to invite us on a journey into a world and into ourselves - a voyage of reality.
Learn from Christine as you join in our conversation:
Chris Maxwell: What is the overall theme of the new CD?
Christine Dente: The overall theme of Voyage is one of intimate worship and wrestling prayer. A devotional book of Puritan prayers called The Valley of Vision inspired me to create these 10 songs.
I tried to blend classic piety with modern, distinctly Out of the Grey sounds, incorporating some of the old words like "thee" and "thou" with my ideas of what interesting pop music should sound like. Producers Scott Dente (my husband) and Ken Lewis created the mixture of electronic and organic elements that make this Voyage unique!
Chris: When audiences listen to that series of songs, what do you hope they learn?
Christine: I hope these songs remind listeners of God's holiness as well as his approachability. Our awareness of His AWESOMENESS makes the good news of His love and mercy all the more beautiful. Listeners have told me that this project takes some time to grow on them and then they can't stop playing it. So I also hope people will take the time to let it sink deeply into their souls and let the musical language speak to their hearts!
Chris: How does this CD compare to the earlier music of Out of the Grey?
Christine: I would say that this CD is distinct from earlier Out of the Grey in that it's as close to a worship record as we've ever come! But it is creatively closer to earlier recordings when we had less pressure to be "radio-friendly" and had more freedom to experiment. Now that we are "indie artists" the creative space is wide open!
Chris: Give us a description of your own spiritual formation and development.
Christine: I would describe my spiritual formation and development as "slow but sure." I did not grow up in a Christian home but had Christian influence all around me in my native Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. I remember the Good News Club with felt-figures of Jesus and always knowing that He was the real deal. I think I actually avoided a lot of the pitfalls of "churched" kids who often end up spending their adult life unraveling the effects of bad theology. Much of my walk is the unraveling of the ravages of alcoholism, divorce and emotional abuse. (On second thought, bad theology may have been preferable.)
Telling my story in God's bigger story through music and recently, my weekly women's group, has been a huge part of my spiritual development. I have devoured Scripture and theological books my entire adult life; but, although I crave the INFORMATION, it has never been enough. I need more than just me and Jesus, a great book and a good cup of coffee. I am still learning to trust and invest my heart in community - experiencing the Lord through His people. Turns out I do need friends after all.
Chris: I've been able to spend time with your family. Update us on your children and provide your overall perspective about parenting in today's culture.
Christine: Our son Julian is nearly 18; our daughters, Carina and Chloe are 15 and 13. We've always been home-based educators (home-school, road-school, studio-school, etc.) with the many advantages and struggles of constantly being together. Many of my early ideals of parenting have held vibrantly true while others have mellowed to a softer hue of grace. For example, high expectations of obedience worked well for us and we have self-controlled and respectful children. On the other hand, my early expectations of what Christian education should look like have since given way to realistic accommodations to weariness, busy-ness and laziness. And to these three individuals whom I cannot and should not control!
I wish I could have kept our kids from the culture longer than we have because soon enough they face the world as it is. I do believe sheltering is important for a time, based on knowing who each child is.
But ultimately, I want to teach them to know the truth so well that they can recognize a counterfeit immediately. In other words, focusing on Christ and our relationship with Him will prepare them to be discerning and thoughtful people within, but not of, the culture. And they will be part of its transformation!
Also, we humans are always tempted to use the law/rules to control behavior, forgetting that the heart/motivation is what God looks at. So when I am tempted to try to control what they choose to watch on TV or how they use social media (I still do a lot of that), instead I focus on our relationships, the inward motivation and encourage them to learn to love Jesus.
Scott and I try to be transparent and we apologize to our children a lot. If he and I can live as honest, submissive, broken, forgiven and rejoicing Christians, this will go a long way in helping our kids live in such a time as this.
Chris: What do you see as you glance into the future? Your music and your other roles? Concerts?
Christine: We'd like to do more concerts so long as it doesn't involve travel :-) Actually, I have a lot of excitement about the future. Scott and I are still enjoying each other after 22 years of marriage and we would like to do some traveling when the kids are all grown. In this economic climate, touring at our level is tough but we'd like to showcase some of the new as well as the old music!
Chris: Let's go back to the CD. If you could pick three songs for everyone to hear, which would you pick? Why?
Christine: My three favorites are Voyage, Valley of Vision and The Mover. The first song sets the pace for the record, bringing out the turbulence of this seemingly chaotic life and reminding us of our desperate need for assurance: "Convert my every care to prayer, convince my heart you're really there and may the world this day be glad that I'm alive."
The second song highlights the paradox of the Jesus way: "Lord, in your wisdom, the way up is down and bearing the cross is wearing the crown."
And the third song, The Mover, has this flowing, jazzy, ghostly feel and it's all about the Holy Spirit, who doesn't "move men like stones but endues them with life, that they may be free to be moved by Thee."
Along the way,
Chris Maxwell
Powerful Statement: "Convert my every care to prayer, convince my heart you're really there and may the world this day be glad that I'm alive."
(Christine Dente, Voyage)
We invite you to purchase Christine Dente's Voyage:
www.christinedente.net is the place to go for a signed copy of the CD and also where you'll find song descriptions and lyrics!
Downloading folks can go to cdbaby.com or ITunes!
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Another day,
Some songs provoke laughter. Humorous lyrics hit the chords of fun and entertainment. There's nothing wrong with a smile or fun. A few tunes can do that.
Other songs invite listeners into new worlds. They might trigger a smile or a deep breath or a question. They inspire thoughts. They reinforce beliefs. Repeating phrases doesn't just sell a product for a commercial or give a few lines you'll always recall. The expressions articulate mystery; the rhythm leads listeners into deeper, thought provoking moments of spiritual formation.
Voyage, Christine Dente's new CD, provides that type of music. Christine and her husband Scott became well-known as the group Out of the Grey. Now, years later, Christine's writing and voice team again with Scott's music and production to invite us on a journey into a world and into ourselves - a voyage of reality.
Learn from Christine as you join in our conversation:
Chris Maxwell: What is the overall theme of the new CD?
Christine Dente: The overall theme of Voyage is one of intimate worship and wrestling prayer. A devotional book of Puritan prayers called The Valley of Vision inspired me to create these 10 songs.
I tried to blend classic piety with modern, distinctly Out of the Grey sounds, incorporating some of the old words like "thee" and "thou" with my ideas of what interesting pop music should sound like. Producers Scott Dente (my husband) and Ken Lewis created the mixture of electronic and organic elements that make this Voyage unique!
Chris: When audiences listen to that series of songs, what do you hope they learn?
Christine: I hope these songs remind listeners of God's holiness as well as his approachability. Our awareness of His AWESOMENESS makes the good news of His love and mercy all the more beautiful. Listeners have told me that this project takes some time to grow on them and then they can't stop playing it. So I also hope people will take the time to let it sink deeply into their souls and let the musical language speak to their hearts!
Chris: How does this CD compare to the earlier music of Out of the Grey?
Christine: I would say that this CD is distinct from earlier Out of the Grey in that it's as close to a worship record as we've ever come! But it is creatively closer to earlier recordings when we had less pressure to be "radio-friendly" and had more freedom to experiment. Now that we are "indie artists" the creative space is wide open!
Chris: Give us a description of your own spiritual formation and development.
Christine: I would describe my spiritual formation and development as "slow but sure." I did not grow up in a Christian home but had Christian influence all around me in my native Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. I remember the Good News Club with felt-figures of Jesus and always knowing that He was the real deal. I think I actually avoided a lot of the pitfalls of "churched" kids who often end up spending their adult life unraveling the effects of bad theology. Much of my walk is the unraveling of the ravages of alcoholism, divorce and emotional abuse. (On second thought, bad theology may have been preferable.)
Telling my story in God's bigger story through music and recently, my weekly women's group, has been a huge part of my spiritual development. I have devoured Scripture and theological books my entire adult life; but, although I crave the INFORMATION, it has never been enough. I need more than just me and Jesus, a great book and a good cup of coffee. I am still learning to trust and invest my heart in community - experiencing the Lord through His people. Turns out I do need friends after all.
Chris: I've been able to spend time with your family. Update us on your children and provide your overall perspective about parenting in today's culture.
Christine: Our son Julian is nearly 18; our daughters, Carina and Chloe are 15 and 13. We've always been home-based educators (home-school, road-school, studio-school, etc.) with the many advantages and struggles of constantly being together. Many of my early ideals of parenting have held vibrantly true while others have mellowed to a softer hue of grace. For example, high expectations of obedience worked well for us and we have self-controlled and respectful children. On the other hand, my early expectations of what Christian education should look like have since given way to realistic accommodations to weariness, busy-ness and laziness. And to these three individuals whom I cannot and should not control!
I wish I could have kept our kids from the culture longer than we have because soon enough they face the world as it is. I do believe sheltering is important for a time, based on knowing who each child is.
But ultimately, I want to teach them to know the truth so well that they can recognize a counterfeit immediately. In other words, focusing on Christ and our relationship with Him will prepare them to be discerning and thoughtful people within, but not of, the culture. And they will be part of its transformation!
Also, we humans are always tempted to use the law/rules to control behavior, forgetting that the heart/motivation is what God looks at. So when I am tempted to try to control what they choose to watch on TV or how they use social media (I still do a lot of that), instead I focus on our relationships, the inward motivation and encourage them to learn to love Jesus.
Scott and I try to be transparent and we apologize to our children a lot. If he and I can live as honest, submissive, broken, forgiven and rejoicing Christians, this will go a long way in helping our kids live in such a time as this.
Chris: What do you see as you glance into the future? Your music and your other roles? Concerts?
Christine: We'd like to do more concerts so long as it doesn't involve travel :-) Actually, I have a lot of excitement about the future. Scott and I are still enjoying each other after 22 years of marriage and we would like to do some traveling when the kids are all grown. In this economic climate, touring at our level is tough but we'd like to showcase some of the new as well as the old music!
Chris: Let's go back to the CD. If you could pick three songs for everyone to hear, which would you pick? Why?
Christine: My three favorites are Voyage, Valley of Vision and The Mover. The first song sets the pace for the record, bringing out the turbulence of this seemingly chaotic life and reminding us of our desperate need for assurance: "Convert my every care to prayer, convince my heart you're really there and may the world this day be glad that I'm alive."
The second song highlights the paradox of the Jesus way: "Lord, in your wisdom, the way up is down and bearing the cross is wearing the crown."
And the third song, The Mover, has this flowing, jazzy, ghostly feel and it's all about the Holy Spirit, who doesn't "move men like stones but endues them with life, that they may be free to be moved by Thee."
Along the way,
Chris Maxwell
Powerful Statement: "Convert my every care to prayer, convince my heart you're really there and may the world this day be glad that I'm alive."
(Christine Dente, Voyage)
We invite you to purchase Christine Dente's Voyage:
www.christinedente.net is the place to go for a signed copy of the CD and also where you'll find song descriptions and lyrics!
Downloading folks can go to cdbaby.com or ITunes!
5 Comments:
Christine we have followed your career from the first Out of the Grey CD. Have always loved your "sweet dichotomies" and LOVING the new work with the Puritan Prayers. It's just where we're at right now, no frills, just truth of scripture in worship. The perfect marriage between music & lyrics with your excellent talent, we appreciate it so much.
Nice words. I liked their music so I think I will get a copy of this new one. Thanks Chris
i love the "sound" of this cd. Purtian prayers, honest confessions, genuine worship. looks like an effective combination. i'm looking forward to it.
Sounds like a CD I need to hear. Will buy it soon. Thanks!
After receiving my copy of Voyage, and taking the time to listen... and listen again... I fell in love! It is NOT a "light-hearted" easy listen... it is so full of truth! God uses it again and again to refocus my thoughts on HIM! Christine's vocals are as beautiful as ever!
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