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Yesterday I wrote about Penn Jillette’s definition of success as “show up on time and do what you say you’re going to do.” Underneath Penn’s statement is a fact that’s important to recognize: if you can’t meet those two halves of success, there are plenty more who can. That’s true […]

“Successful is, simply, show up on time [and] do what you say you’re going to do. That’s all success is–everything else in success is bulls**t.” – Penn Jillette, in conversation with Brian Koppelman It’s as simple as that: show up and deliver what you’ve promised. This is from one of […]

Don’t worry if you haven’t got powerhouse voices in your incoming groups. Worry about finding powerhouse attitudes. If your goals for your choir include: Create a positive creative environment Continue to grow throughout the school year Make egoless music Draw more students into your choral program Have singers leave excited […]

Nothing brightens a room like a fresh coat of paint. Dings and smudges disappear, old cracks and nail holes can be covered and smoothed. A new color breathes new life into a familiar space. What about bringing a fresh coat of paint to your rehearsal? A few new strategies, a […]

In The Importance of Being Earnest, Algernon’s second line is, “I don’t play accurately—any one can play accurately—but I play with wonderful expression.  As far as the piano is concerned, sentiment is my forte.  I keep science for Life.” Oscar Wilde wrote the line for laughs – who, after all, wants to […]

“To be natural is such a very difficult pose to keep up.” – Oscar Wilde, in Importance of Being Earnest Oscar Wilde was never exactly natural – the work of writing a brilliant play like Importance that also includes dozens of witty one-liners must have been tremendous. No one speaks as witty as […]

The most likely time to quit is just before a breakthrough. It’s when you’re struggling to take the next step forward creatively that your future as an artist feels bleakest. The bleakness will make you want to quit. If you can only persist, a little longer, you might find it’s […]

If you’re going on a road trip with kids this summer, I can’t recommend highly enough the app Megaphone for your travel entertainment. A quick connection to Bluetooth or an aux jack in your car stereo, and your voice is amplified into every car speaker. A reader can read aloud to […]

Music comes with difficulty: to make music at a high level requires coordination, concentration, passion, expression, and years and years of concerted practice. Music comes naturally: it is effortless and innate for children to make music, to want to listen to music, and to interact with musical instruments. Can you believe both […]

There are people who say “I don’t read books.” Let’s not discuss them. There are some readers who say, “I don’t read nonfiction.” To them I say, you are missing so many opportunities to get the best ideas, condensed and made accessible to you. You’re letting someone else do the […]