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Put kids who’ve never met together, and it doesn’t take long for them to find commonality, play games, climb trees, or just run around. Kids are built to make friends easily. We all are, I think, but our adulthood gets in our way; forces barriers against openness and slows down the friendship train. […]

I’ve been searching for the right audition management approach that provides all-digital audition form and signup. I think I finally found the right combination (and free!) with the following. (This is not paid – I’m just excited!). For audition form, nothing beats a Google Form. all the information is in […]

Auditions are a leap of faith – for everyone involved. As an auditionee, you are trying something – something you might not feel ready for – because you want the experience. You go into the unknown. As an auditioner, you are trusting that at the other end, there is an ensemble that […]

A couple of years ago I committed to a little note (sometimes words, sometimes drawings) in each of my kids’ lunchboxes, every school day. Today I was reflecting on what makes something special, in reality and perceptions. First, I have to say up front that I’m not tied to their reaction – I’m doing […]

There ain’t no tired like a first-day tired…whether you’re a kindergartener, a high school senior, or a veteran teacher: the first day back to school is a beast. Take comfort in the fact that your body will soon adjust to the new rhythms; and take comfort that part of your exhaustion is […]

As you start up the new year, ask this chicken-egg question… Which comes first? Vulnerability or trust? Does willingness to be vulnerable engender trust? Or can you only be vulnerable when you have amassed sufficient trust? We can agree, at least, that both are important traits of the successful choir: […]

Think of three of the best in the field you want to succeed in. If it’s choral conducting, you might pick Robert Shaw, Craig Hella Johnson, Sandra Snow. Broadway performers? Audra McDonald, Bernadette Peters, Barbara Cook. For leading vocal jazz, I’d pick Steve Zegree, Phil Mattson, Duane Davis. If I were […]

It takes a long time to be ready on day one. Teachers perform extensive training before their first day of teaching – college, accreditation, internship – but Day One of Year Fifteen finds you feeling much more ready. Basic Training is meant to prepare soldiers, but my guess is most would say they […]

Imagine two genetically identical tree seeds, planted in different locations – and then imagine them in 20 years. Do they still look identical? No, of course not. Weather, soil, neighboring plants, animal traffic, and 1,000 other factors are distinct enough to cause slight differences that magnify over time. Even with the same starting point, […]

Without a doubt, the best way to see Europe is with a choir. Your travel group is made up of people you already know well from rehearsals and performances. When everyone else is taking pictures of famous locations and moving on, you get to make music in places expressly designed for singing. After all of […]