arrange • compose • conduct
There are some birds I see year-round in my yard. Chickadees. Cardinals. Blue Jays. There are others, migratory birds, that I might see only briefly, if I’m watching carefully, as they pass over en route to their summer or winter homes. This spring I saw a group of Redpolls for […]
I had an interesting arrangement challenge recently – it was for a flash mob-style performance at a wedding, and had some very specific requirements, not least a very limited amount of rehearsal time. Since the commissioning party is an excellent singer but not a professional musician, I thought carefully about […]
I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling a bit jarred. After more than a year of talking about how to begin gathering again, how to make it meaningful, how to take meaningful steps toward a healthier balance…after that year, my world has thundered back into a busyness that looks […]
I consider the albums recorded by Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong (Ella and Louis, Ella and Louis Again, and Porgy and Bess) to be some of the most important jazz vocal albums of all time. The playing, the singing, the swinging, the sheer joy of these albums is immeasurable. I […]
Two ways people in power fail: Failing to use their power to make things better. This can be because they don’t see a problem, because they’re busy and distracted, because they aren’t hearing demand for change, or any number of other reasons. Claiming their progress. If you make progress, but […]
“I was reminded that aesthetic beauty is as much about how and whether you look as what you see.” John Green, in The Anthropocene Reviewed In this quote, John Green is describing being captivated with the beauty of an oak leaf, thanks to his young child. Children are great at […]
There are almost always many different ways to notate the same thing. As simple a change as 4/4 vs 2/2, to more complex metric changes (3/4 in 1 vs 6/8 in 2, e.g.), enharmonic notation, even notating a rubato vs. just using fermatas. When you have to decide how it’s […]
I saw a social media post a while ago listing the various technical and educational hurdles they cleared to create a virtual concert. One of them included the phrase “yelling at kids to […]”. That’s where you lost me. I believe in the importance of musical excellence, of motivating students […]
What is your new normal going to be? My students are primed for a return to normalcy in the fall. Concerts are on the calendar, retreats are being scheduled, and we’re anticipating a full menu of the statewide events we usually enjoy being a part of. But with over a […]
I am completing what I sincerely hope is my last virtual choir video editing project. (It’s one more recording from Shades of Blue, to be premiered soon!) What’s been pleasing is how much more quickly this one has come together. I was able to come up with a vision for […]