Songwriter and pianist Jerry Peters grew up in the gospel tradition, and one can hear in the beginning and end of the arrangement for his song, “Burnin’ Bush,” a paired invocation and benediction on the electric piano.

Notice how these moments bookend the song. As the song begins, the smallness of the lone electric piano suggests an incense-filled antechamber that opens up into the full majesty of the arrangement, decked out in orchestral splendor. And then, as we leave this grandeur behind, we exit through that same small chamber with the electric piano.

It’s a spiritual and musical analog to what deep-sea divers do. After swimming along the ocean floor, they must stop to depressurize before resurfacing. Likewise, this arrangement's final moment allows us to collect ourselves before exiting into silence.

Thank you for reading.