arrange • compose • conduct
I start out each week planning the perfect rehearsal. Efficient! Fun! Productive! There is music, and laughter, and camaraderie, and mutual respect among all people in the rehearsal. This, of course, never happens. I plan the perfect rehearsal, but I never plan on the perfect rehearsal! Why? There’s a sporting […]
We spend so much time practicing singing in choir, and give so much feedback on singing better…but how much time do we spend practicing listening and giving feedback on listening better? I can sometimes sing and listen critically to what’s happening around me at the same time. Not always. The […]
I remember wanting to learn to mark scores more effectively, and being told by someone, “there’s lots of different ways to mark score. However you do it is fine, just pick a method.” I remember mostly being utterly unsatisfied with that suggestion – what I wanted was a specific tool […]
I used to get frustrated as the conductor of a tenor-bass a cappella ensemble, because of the easy fandom they received. They could give a good performance and get screams from their peers, even when an outstanding performance by another choir on the same concert didn’t receive the same level […]
I got to do a mini-clinic today on a piece I had arranged. It’s almost always joyful to be a guest clinician in that way. The nature of the work means you can move fast, fix things, shake up singers, and generally have a lot of fun. Singers listen to […]
Just because we all have to be in agreement doesn’t mean we all have to be beholden to the page. A rhythmic disagreement between sections tonight offered an opportunity to ignore the sheet music. Sheet music, of course, only contains a fraction of the musicality – there’s a lot of […]
I tried a new activity at this year’s retreat, and I’m keeping it. Two Minute Talents! Each singer brought some small talent or trick (think “Stupid Human Tricks”) that could be performed in two minutes or less. It was raucous fun – laughter, silliness, and impressive, all at once! It […]
The last time I was on a retreat was in 2019, and this weekend I’m (with school approval and as safely as I can) on a retreat with the Rockford Aces. I’ve noticed a trend in my own retreat planning towards more human connection and away from actual musical rehearsal. […]
In rehearsal, I heard myself say, “It’s your group – I’m just here to help you achieve your potential.” I really believe that. I call them “my students” or “my singers” but they don’t belong to me. On the other hand, “their director” is a good description – my role […]
I love a mix of recipes I know by heart and recipes I’ve never made before. I have so many things in my weekly repertoire whose recipes I don’t even look at anymore – I bake and cook from memory many times a week. But life gets stale if you’re […]