arrange • compose • conduct
Posts discussing education, both in and outside of music
I listened to a couple of young men talking about their favorite games the other day. “How many hours do you have in-game?” one asked. “1,100 hours,” was the reply. “Oh, I only have 650.” On it went, and it became increasingly clear that in addition to knowing the games […]
I learned to luge today. (Wow, that’s a funny sentence to type.) The thing I learned about luging is that the right choice is highly counterintuitive. You need to lean back, and tuck your legs in, when your instinct is telling you to sit up and use your legs to […]
I love a good Snow Day Reflection … And there was a concern that, with the explosion of skills in remote synchronous teaching, there might never be another one. The good news is that many school districts seem to have committed to maintaining the status quo, at least for now.* […]
I’m in the background watching my son discuss a merit badge he’s working on with a counselor, and thinkng about the motivation that comes from discrete, earnable achievements. Of course, concerts are the ultimate discrete achievements – specific pieces are brought from unfamiliarity to performance in a limited amount of […]
The practice of making your decisions and behaviors match your ideals is the work of a lifetime. We are all working on it. It’s why New Year’s Resolutions continue to exist and hold our attention. The desire of matching ideals and behaviors. Our students will repeatedly fail at this matching–just […]
We sometimes think that all the learning happens during those four or six years of college/grad school. The truth is, lots more learning happens afterwards, if we are open to it. In other words: what used to be hard doesn’t stay hard. I was reflecting on this today as I […]
Life’s worthwhile arcs often last a lifetime. There are deadlines, due dates, smaller projects that come and go – but the overall arc is never-ending. Contrast that with the impression we often give students over 13 years of compulsory schooling: that knowledge is discrete; that every unit comes with a […]
A math educator friend posted a fun 3-minute math puzzle on Facebook yesterday – it was fun for me to play, though I only got close to the right answer. (If only I was still calculus-adept…). Of the responses, several were by musicians/music educators, and in his replies, my friend […]
In my experience, traditions can be both a great tool and a great challenge in choral programs. They are opportunities to build camaraderie and connection across generations of students passing through your ensembles. But sometimes they become the tail that wags the dog – driving decisions you make for the […]
However you spent your remote teaching, you are enough. If you organized and pulled off a 45-minute virtual “concert” … you are enough. If you poured your whole heart into one virtual choir song in tribute to a colleague … you are enough. If you didn’t do any virtual choir […]