arrange • compose • conduct
You can discern the tone of a soloist, easily. A duet, a trio – these are ensembles where the individual singers’ timbres are center-stage. Even the quartets, quintets, octets that reach fame are often made of distinct voices. I can hear each voice in the New York Voices, The Real […]
In the first few turns of Yahtzee, your scorecard is wide open. You can take huge risks, knowing you’ll be able to score something, even if it isn’t ideal. And your risks can pay off with lucky rolls and higher scores. In the last few turns of Yahtzee, you’re most […]
Morituri Te Salutemus. That is the expression that slaves were required to shout to the Roman Imperial ruler when they entered the arena for gladiatorial death matches. We, who are about to die, salute you. When I was young, what struck me was the intimate knowledge of mortality – the […]
When you’re out in a kayak and a waterski boat goes by, you’re going to hit some waves. You learn pretty quick how to steer your watercraft so that it causes minimal problems. Now, if a wakeboarder goes by, you’ll hit much bigger waves – but your experience and some […]
I have been consistently inspired the past few weeks by the collaborative, supportive, freely sharing spirit of educators. So many teachers are spending every available moment creating new content, researching new techniques, learning new modalities – and they are freely sharing whatever they discover with colleagues. A pandemic makes us […]
To varying extent, we all teach in real time, rather than from a concrete plan. Good teachers react in the moment to their students’ faces, to the questions that are asked, to the specific singing that they hear from the choir. We make detailed lesson plans, and we throw them […]
A recent CDC study says that 25% of 18-24 year olds contemplated suicide in June. Even more reported anxiety and stress-related disorders. That’s got to be our top priority as teachers. Before we get to talking about robust learning, scaffolded growth and learning communities, before we get to talking about […]
Being in a choir is more than singing together. It’s a family. It’s a community. It’s the best place I know to learn collaboration and trust. Being in a choir is more than singing together, but I just know that the first time we can all sing together again, I […]
The week before school starts is always a tenuous time. Then there’s 2020. The week before is about trying to balance the first-day jitters and the prep work with the desire to squeeze every last bit of joy from the summer. The week before is about looking around and saying, […]
This is my fourth year directing Shades of Blue Vocal Jazz Ensemble at Grand Rapids Community College. It goes without saying that normalcy isn’t going to be found in choral ensembles anywhere in the world this year. Here’s my plan for Shades of Blue. The ensemble will be focusing on […]