Borrowing, Stealing, and "Same-Saying"

"Amateurs borrow. Professionals steal."

The above quote was a comment by the wonderful conductor of my college choir after I was remarking on Facebook about always feeling like I'm inadvertently stealing the writing in my musical compositions. After completing a composition project, I always feel like the piece sounds familiar. It makes sense that I would feel this way since I "hear" what I want the piece to be in my head before and while writing it, but I always wonder if I have, in fact, heard it outside of my head before. I'm not necessarily a fan of the above quote itself*, but I think it is making an interesting point about depth of understanding and ownership.

Amateurs only borrow because they never have ownership of the material they borrow. They do not have mastery of the material. The material borrowed remains associated with the original source. Professionals steal because they can claim a certain ownership of the material. They have mastery over the material.

When thinking about this, it brought to mind the confessing or "same-saying" aspect of the Christian faith. The Church uses creeds and prayers as confessions of faith that may have been written many, many centuries ago, but we "same-say" them. We are making them our own. We are claiming ownership of them as our own personal creeds and prayers. They did not originate with us and they will endure after we are gone, yet they are ours. We do not borrow them only to let go of them and give them back later, but we receive them as a gift that multiplies through giving since in giving them we also keep them.

To bring this back to my original discussion of musical composition, I do not wish to steal or borrow the work of someone else (unless I'm "borrowing" in the sense of arranging). Yet, even though I say this, I have and will intentionally "same-say" using compositional vocabulary borrowed from other composers as an homage. I use their language as my own to preserve their voice from the past, add my voice to it in the present, and share this voice into the future for others to continue to "same-say" along with.

*I would prefer a variant something like "Amateurs borrow. Professionals own." or "Amateurs copy. Professionals pay homage." or "Amateurs borrow. Professionals 'same-say.'" but they aren't as striking.