Fr Mark Baumgarten is a Catholic priest in Perth, Australia, who currently serves as a parish priest. Before becoming a priest, he worked as a self-taught musician playing background piano on river cruises and in a pub cover band and wrote several songs as gifts for friends or as a form of musical journaling.  He continued to use music in his seminary life by leading a band and writing light-hearted pieces for comedy shows. He speaks about a significant moment during a 30-day silent retreat where he was playing the piano and felt the tears welling up, leading him to write a simple song with the word goodbye repeated throughout.  During the lockdown in 2020, he rediscovered his song-writing voice and wrote his debut studio album, "Now and Not Yet," which covers a variety of genres and reflects his broad musical tastes over the years. The album is a kind of musical autobiography, with the first half of the album featuring songs from his pre-seminary days and the second half featuring more recent songs that follow his path into the priesthood and parish ministry.  Fr Mark has written songs for a follow-up album, and a single for Christmas 2022 titled "A Newborn King" has been released. Fr. Mark Baumgarten opens up about his life, the incidents that inspired him to choose priestly life, his musical passions, and the songs he has performed. Host Merci Faith Rico interviews Fr Mark Baumgarten in this episode of ‘Beats’. Episode Breakdown: 01.00 - A Family Background 03.00 - Becoming a Catholic Priest 08.54 - Writing Songs and Music 13.22 - The Different Roles of Life 15.45 - Music that Makes Us Feel 17.03 - Tell God Your Plans  Songs: 1.Goodbye 2.Easter Sunday Morning 3.Now and Not Yet Ever wonder what it takes to be a Christian music artist in a world that is engrossed in secular music? The life of a Christian music artist is one of excitement, fear, joy, and challenges. Here is a peek into the life, faith, and music of Fr. Mark Baumgarten. Fr. Mark Baumgarten: https://pianopriest.com Shalom World: https://www.shalomworld.org Support us: https://shalomworld.org/donate Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shalomworldpodcasts/