arrange • compose • conduct
Posts discussing education, both in and outside of music
It seems to me there are two mindsets in the choral classroom. You can be student-focused, or you can be music-focused. A student-focused choral educator will always prioritize the mental and emotional needs of their students. They create a safe space for student expression, teach leadership, collaboration, and trust as […]
There comes a time when we all have to become specialists. Time is maybe the biggest cause – there simply isn’t enough time for us to be generalists about everything. Also the demands of a specific job or career path tend to focus us into specialization. But I think it’s […]
It’s birthday month around here – 4 out of 5 birthdays fall within 30 days in our house. So, I get a lot of practice making cakes this time of year. I get pretty good at it by the end of June! But then again, for 11 months out of […]
My wife, Mandy, is a brilliant conductor. She regularly makes magic happen in concert and in rehearsal. She has wonderful musical instincts, impeccable training, and makes visual poetry with her conducting. But even as she makes the music come alive, she puts the people first. In the course of her […]
For a long time, I haven’t been very interested in endings. I’m almost always looking forward to the next concert, the next year, the next project. I’ll celebrate in the moment, but pretty soon I’m on to the next thing. This school year feels like something I need to sit […]
Just like that, it’s June. It’s the last week of this impossible, interminable year, at least here. (Some ended last week. Some have a week or two to go.) Of course, it wasn’t just like that. Every year is a marathon, but this was an ironman triathlon if ever I […]
My dad described one of his first chances to scrub in with an orthopedic surgeon, on the day he was interviewing for an internship in that hospital. When the surgery was mostly done, the doctor offered him a chance to see the work, and my dad noticed, and pointed out, […]
There are some birds I see year-round in my yard. Chickadees. Cardinals. Blue Jays. There are others, migratory birds, that I might see only briefly, if I’m watching carefully, as they pass over en route to their summer or winter homes. This spring I saw a group of Redpolls for […]
I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling a bit jarred. After more than a year of talking about how to begin gathering again, how to make it meaningful, how to take meaningful steps toward a healthier balance…after that year, my world has thundered back into a busyness that looks […]
I saw a social media post a while ago listing the various technical and educational hurdles they cleared to create a virtual concert. One of them included the phrase “yelling at kids to […]”. That’s where you lost me. I believe in the importance of musical excellence, of motivating students […]