jedscott

I always, always love the moment of shipping a new piece. It’s a great thrill to get a draft you’re happy with to the commissioning conductor and ensemble. But I always, always watch my stress level increase, bit by bit, from the moment I ship it until the moment I […]

Tomorrow begins another semester for many colleges and universities, and the first day of school in 2019 for K-12 schools across the country. With that in mind, I wish you a restful night free from first-day anxiety. You’ve got this! I know that a break can leave you feeling like […]

When I read for inspiration, I get at least as much insight and direction from things written at angles to my own work as I do from writings in my circle. Put another way – I learn a lot from reading outside of my discipline. It’s tempting to focus reading […]

Maybe you’re starting a New Year’s resolution that involves more consistent practice. It’s certainly a common one, and a worthy goal. It’s important to maintain this mindset as you set off towards more regular practicing: don’t expect results. I mean, of course expect results. But don’t be tied to them, […]

There are several ways for teachers to make their students stronger. (That’s the goal, isn’t it?) You can push down on your students. They will either crumple or push back, getting stronger along the way. You can have a tug-of-war with your students. Drag them towards your hill – they’ll […]

Owing to a quirk of copyright laws in the 1990s, no works have entered the public domain in the U.S. for twenty years. That ended yesterday, when all works created in 1923 became public domain. While these works aren’t exactly new, they do offer new material for composers and arrangers […]

Seth Godin has pointed out that no marathon coach can promise, “I can teach you how to run a marathon without getting tired.” No, a marathon coach’s job is to teach you how to manage the tiredness. It’s important that vocal music educators understand that that’s our job, too. It’s […]

Consider these 2019 dates: January 14 (Orthodox New Year)February 5 (Chinese New Year)July 1 (Fiscal New Year)September 2 (Labor Day – School New Year)September 29-October 1 (Rosh Hashanah – Jewish New Year) Those are just the ones I googled in a couple of minutes – not to mention the college […]

2018 was a year to remember with much happening on many fronts. It hasn’t been without its failures or missteps, but I also saw some pretty spectacular things happen for me both professionally and personally. Here’s an overview of my work year: Writing I published a new post on this […]

I published a post here every day in 2018. Here’s a favorite post from each month. January: The Two Chords BeforeFebruary: Favorite In The WorldMarch: Inspiring Women MusiciansApril: Leadership is in Step 2May: Three Kinds of KnowingJune: How Many Listens?July: Secret SchoolAugust: The First CrêpeSeptember: Thirty TimesOctober: LogisticsNovember: Tell Them I […]