Distracted rehearsals serve a purpose. Don’t tell my students I said this…
Leading a choral rehearsal at the high school level can certainly often feel like cat-herding. Distractedness is high, silliness is endemic, focus is sometimes in short supply.
I stand with every other choral conductor working to keep distractedness to a minimum and focus universal.
And yet.
And yet, I also think the distraction is good. For three reasons:
- Distraction offers release. High school students are tense. They are working extremely hard and experiencing a lot of pressure from every direction. A little silliness or a brief side conversation can be a very effective way of releasing the pressure valve.
- Distraction builds camaraderie. In those micro-moments of distractedness, individuals are building bonds with the people near them. This, in the end, helps the music.
- Distraction is a counterweight. We don’t know what a great rehearsal feels like without knowing what a distracted rehearsal feels like. Use the distracted moments to lift up the focused moments.
If my students use this to justify more chaos in rehearsal, I’ll deny it all.