arrange • compose • conduct
Having a guest clinician in front of your choir is like having a good proofreader. Anything longer than two sentences, I want a proofreader. It’s not because I think I’m a poor writer – I’ve got a handle on the basics. It’s simply this: mistakes creep into everyone’s writing. We […]
I didn’t have a concert tonight. More precisely, I didn’t have the concert I planned – several of my students put together wonderful jazz solos to fill some of the time that Shades of Blue was set to perform in. Unfortunately, a quartet and Covid-19 don’t go together well. It’s […]
Be aware of just how much context you’re bringing when you begin a piece with your students. I’m watching a “Technical Challenge” in the Great British Bake-Off, in which the contestant bakers are asked to bake a recipe sight-unseen. Sometimes, as in the one I’m watching now, it’s a type […]
If you want to be able to trust them later, you have to trust them sooner. This is a core tenet of my approach as an educator and as a parent: let your trust spread as wide and as deep as it possibly can. The key to making this work […]
I love Thanksgiving for the Usuals. I love that when I make this cranberry recipe, I think of that person and our meal together twenty years ago. I love that when I make this apple pie recipe, I know to omit the golden raisins because my niece has strong opinions. […]
The right directorial approach depends on the situation. I love the Socratic method in music rehearsal: asking questions, probing possibilities, discovering the right solution for this ensemble. I love it because it’s a powerful tool for learning, growth, and empowerment of my students. But it’s not the most efficient. There’s […]
We don’t need to agree on our philosophy in front of an ensemble. As long as your perspective is defensible, I respect it! Maybe you choose easily attainable repertoire, so you can aim for high level artistry. That’s defensible. Maybe you choose incredibly hard rep, so that your students grow, […]
Is it because it’s the right decision, or just because it’s how I did it before? Historically, the Aces start rehearsing on sound system starting in March or April – enough time to get confident on mic and to polish all repertoire for their end-of-year concert. But this year, I […]
Performances don’t always go as planned. Some lackluster performances can be blamed on someone – “I missed that cue” or “You didn’t learn that part as well as you should have.” But many performances don’t have a convenient spot to blame. It was a novel acoustic environment, or what someone […]
Do you ever feel this way in rehearsal? “I’ve taught everything I know how to teach. Everything I know, I’ve said.” When I start to feel that way, I remind myself these things: Repeat yourself – the turnover of students is faster than you think. In other words, I haven’t […]