Skip to content

Jed Scott Music

arrange • compose • conduct

  • HOME
  • ABOUT
  • PUBLICATIONS
  • COMMISSION
  • NEWSLETTER
  • BIBLIOGRAPHY
  • CONTACT
  • SHOP

jedscott

Reusable Documents

January 20, 2023January 20, 2023 jedscottEducation, Leadership

Repeating means reusing. I love the second, and third, and fourth time doing something – because it gives me the chance to reuse things I’ve worked hard on. Hard-won knowledge, certainly, but even more frequently, carefully crafted documents. In my sixth time supervising the Michigan All-State Choir, I have a […]

Read more

Never Finished

January 19, 2023January 19, 2023 jedscottArranging, Composition, Music Literacy

I’m busy editing a number of scores. What else is new? It’s a privilege that I get to work with new works by other people frequently, in addition to my own writing. As I work through the editing process, I realize that the editing process is really never, ever finished. […]

Read more

Decide, Debate, or Delegate?

January 18, 2023January 18, 2023 jedscottLeadership

In every organization, someone needs to ask this question. Should I decide, debate, or delegate? Over and over again, I have been in meetings that could have lasted half as long if there was a clear differentiation between decisions to be made by the leader and decisions that needed to […]

Read more

You’ll Never Work A Day

January 17, 2023January 17, 2023 jedscottHuman Nature

“Follow your heart, and you’ll never work and day in your life.” So goes the aphorism we tell young people – heck, we tell ourselves! And it’s just not true. Doing things well is hard, whether you love doing them or not. That’s the truth. It’s also still a good […]

Read more

Communityism

January 16, 2023January 16, 2023 jedscottHuman Nature, Leadership

Communities take time. One of the best things you can do for your choir is to craft a community they can be a part of. Call it communityism. Being a part of a community makes everything easier. You know who to call for a favor. You know who can solve […]

Read more

That Won’t Work

January 15, 2023January 15, 2023 jedscottGrowth

The intuition of experience is remarkable. I can look at a new score and find the spots that won’t work with good success. I’ll play through a section and say, “That won’t work.” I can go back and think about why, but the answer comes before I consciously know the […]

Read more

Diminishing Returns

January 14, 2023January 14, 2023 jedscottLeadership, Rehearsal Technique

For every extended rehearsal you plan, ask yourself this question: Have I scheduled past the point of diminishing returns? I always want to maximize available time and use every minute for the growth and improvement of my ensembles. But I have been in situations where other leaders have scheduled a […]

Read more

It Doesn’t Need To Have Everything

January 13, 2023January 13, 2023 jedscottArranging, Creativity, Vocal Jazz

Your creation doesn’t need to have everything. Just make what’s necessary, and then stop. I finished a vocal jazz arrangement today that fits on two pages. Not an a cappella ballad, either! In this case, I was casting around, trying to see what kind of soli, shout chorus, vocalese, or […]

Read more

Today Might Not Be About Today

January 12, 2023January 12, 2023 jedscottEducation, Growth, Recording

Sometimes the important work you do today isn’t what looks like the work. For example, today’s studio session was great – we tracked three songs for the Aces in three hours, plus a little bonus track really quickly at the end! They worked hard, grew, and put down some great […]

Read more

Unprecious

January 11, 2023January 11, 2023 jedscottArranging, Choral Music, Composition

Don’t take your creations too seriously. At least, I don’t. The third time my students read a rhythm differently than written yesterday, I changed it on the spot. As I said to them, “Just because I wrote it doesn’t mean I got it right!” I can make mistakes in my […]

Read more

Posts navigation

Older posts
Newer posts
Jed Scott writes music and words in Rockford, Michigan. Learn more here.

newsletter

Subscribe to my Weekly Newsletter

Every Friday you'll receive everything I’ve written that week along with a few interesting links. Join me.

Posts by category

search for posts

newsletter

Subscribe to my Weekly Newsletter

Every Friday you'll receive everything I’ve written that week along with a few interesting links. Join me.

  • HOME
  • ABOUT
  • PUBLICATIONS
  • COMMISSION
  • NEWSLETTER
  • BIBLIOGRAPHY
  • CONTACT
  • SHOP
Powered by WordPress | Theme: Astrid by aThemes.