by Gordon Nary
Gordon: To What parish do you belong and what do you appreciate most about your parish?
Deborah: I belong to the parish of Our Lady of Lourdes in Staffordshire. It is a busy but lovely community- spirited Church that accommodates and welcomes parishioners of all ages and from all walks of life.
Gordon: Where did you study painting?
Deborah: My passion for art blossomed during my school years where I was encouraged to pursue my love of drawing and painting by my art teachers. I realized that I could escape through my drawing and really looked forward to and enjoyed the classes putting my greatest efforts into the work that was set for the art classes.
Connecting with the other pupils helped to create a calm and relaxing atmosphere in which to create and I enjoyed all aspects of the lessons using many mediums, but my real passion for art was ignited by the drawing classes and watercolour painting.
Gordon: Who is your favorite composer any why is this person your favorite?
Deborah: I love especially the music of Mascagni and Puccini. Opera music is rooted in real life rather than that of the gods or mythology, where the music and drama are seamlessly matched and often describe a story of passion and romance. Puccini's operas contain glorious melodies which perfectly capture his characters' emotional states.
I love listening to this music and eventually found that both of my passions, music and painting, combined. I began painting a special collection of musically-inspired portraits of famous musicians and opera singers, asking the subjects of my work if they would be interested in supporting my artistic venture by signing my work.
Signed portraits and sketches were popular during 'the golden age of opera', they were a romantic and nostalgic tradition that sadly seems to have been forgotten today. The portraits of long ago speak to us of a time lost and, as an artist, I felt compelled to capture in paint once more some of today's leading maestros and performers.
Gordon: Please share with our readers some information about The Music Culture Academy?
Deborah: The Music Culture Academy is invaluable in as much as it provides to anyone who is interested a diverse selection of music related courses. It offers guidance from successful musicians, tips from the experts and also information from professionals in other fields including knowledge on how music affects the world and provides the ability to share with like-minded people music and artwork.
Gordon: How in your opinion does music enhance faith?
Deborah: Music and religion have played integral roles in human life and including music and faith encourages congregation participation and helps to build a sense of community. Although our world continues to evolve and change, more so now than ever, the Church and also our faith continues to be strengthened and preserved with the help of music. Art and music are fired by emotion and have to power to act upon our souls, both intensely and universally.
Gordon: Thank you for a great interview!