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Welcome to the first post of my Summer Read-Along: Dare To Lead by Brené Brown. I chose this book because I think the skill of leadership is so important to educators in general, and to music educators in particular. As Dr. Brown says in the introduction, “As I often tell teachers–some of […]

Krista Tippett: You talked about in tenth grade how you fell in love with Walt Whitman. I think that’s the first line of your book. And I kind of think, part of what you are feeling and in pain about is that enough people aren’t falling in love with Walt […]

One of my core operating principles in rehearsal is to teach with concepts, not quick fixes. Almost every time you take 2 minutes to fix a specific problem, you would be better off spending 4-5 minutes establishing a concept that can be applied to multiple situations. Choose the right concepts […]

I am interested in giving my students more opportunities to speak in front of an audience as part of an ensemble – and the best way to do that is to introduce a song in our set. Here’s a template for the pieces I’d like to hear in a student […]

Lockstep education is the norm. By that, I mean this mindset: if you were born within these 12 months, you’re in this grade. For the first 10 to 20 years of life, we are fed, over and over again, that our peers are those who were born in the same […]

Some time ago, there was a house in the neighborhood that waited as long as possible for their first mow of the spring. Actually, they waited longer than possible. When they finally mowed the long grasses around their house, it left huge piles of clippings and shocked the lawn to […]

I read aloud a few pieces of information about each senior in my ensemble at our final concert. One is: what is your favorite moment of your time in the Aces? The favorite moment is never from an average Monday night rehearsal. It’s a moment from retreat, or a tour, […]

I’ve addressed before the repeated (and rubbish) questions graduates often get – especially for those pursuing music. What are you going to pursue? What do you want to do with your life? What are you majoring in? And on, and on. Variations on one theme. Here, I suggest you take […]

One of the goals I set for my students and work to incorporate, gradually and persistently, is autonomy. That is, I want them to develop the ability to make music as an ensemble and as individuals, without an authority figure in front of them. I thought that the most obvious […]

Here are the three directives I gave my students before they walked onstage to start a 2 hour plus concert tonight. Mental focus. Stay mentally in the present, executing what you know as well as you can. Physical stamina. This we build over time, developing an ability to maintain energy […]