Changes in Your Score
I never finish a vocal jazz score without including chord changes in the vocal part.
Tensegrity
I’m fascinated by the idea of tensegrity.
Value Set vs. Skill Set
Do your auditions and interviews give too much weight to skill sets and not enough to value sets?
Just Because Something is Easy
Just because something is easy doesn’t mean you’re not learning.
Learning Sounds Messy
Zip your lips and let ’em go.
Five Reasons To Commission New Music
A core of my musical philosophy is around commissioning new music. Here are five reasons I think commissioning music is worthwhile for any music conductor. 5. It’s important for furthering the art! Your commission might be the next piece everyone is singing or playing – moving the community forward. 4. […]
Sing Without Me
I had a quick National Anthem gig for the Aces, but I was double booked. They could be there. I couldn’t. What a great opportunity! A National Anthem performance is the perfect first chance to practice singing without your conductor, for leadership to step up. It’s low-stakes! (The crowd for […]
Lie To Yourself
The best meetings I’ve led have been the ones when I’ve lied to myself. Let me be honest: I am always, always, always prepping for a meeting right before it happens. That time earlier to prep? I was in another meeting, or doing other work on a deadline, or prioritizing […]
Three Moments of Musical Literacy
There are three moments from my high school years that stand out for me as inspiring my desire for musical literacy, and specifically for the kind of musical skills I gravitated towards. Three musical professionals in my life offhandedly demonstrated their literacy in a way that resonates to this day. […]
Not The Special Part
Having a group of singers who can sing well together isn’t the special part. Thousands upon thousands of singers have learned to master vocal jazz and choral music over the decades, singing tight harmony in tune. As hard as it is, it’s not that special. What is special is finding […]