arrange • compose • conduct
I read aloud a few pieces of information about each senior in my ensemble at our final concert. One is: what is your favorite moment of your time in the Aces? The favorite moment is never from an average Monday night rehearsal. It’s a moment from retreat, or a tour, […]
I’ve addressed before the repeated (and rubbish) questions graduates often get – especially for those pursuing music. What are you going to pursue? What do you want to do with your life? What are you majoring in? And on, and on. Variations on one theme. Here, I suggest you take […]
One of the goals I set for my students and work to incorporate, gradually and persistently, is autonomy. That is, I want them to develop the ability to make music as an ensemble and as individuals, without an authority figure in front of them. I thought that the most obvious […]
Here are the three directives I gave my students before they walked onstage to start a 2 hour plus concert tonight. Mental focus. Stay mentally in the present, executing what you know as well as you can. Physical stamina. This we build over time, developing an ability to maintain energy […]
There is an inevitability to the busiest concert days that you’ll forget something. Whether it’s my friend who had to buy new concert attire this afternoon because he left his at home, too far to get back, or the simple failure to acknowledge an important person from the stage during […]
We wrap up courses with examinations, to determine what students have learned. What I want to know, though, is what they think they learned. What would it look like to take your exam time, or a class period at the end the year, or a final rehearsal, or voice lesson, […]
Congratulations to Rob Stow and the Elk Rapids HS Choirs for their premiere of “Raise Your Voice” tonight at their final concert. This piece was collaboratively composed by me and my wife, Mandy, with texts from Mandy, our daughter, and Rumi. (We also included a favorite spoken text from Howard […]
On one end of the spectrum, the diligent Choral Ensemble A looking devotedly, and consistently at their conductor. Whatever emotional expression the singers make, it is directed at their leader. On the other end, the expressive Choral Ensemble Z, emoting directly at the audience as if they actors, with little […]
When grades are your only motivation, what will you do after graduation? Performance review? That hardly seems to be the motivation for virtually anyone to do good work. Money? That’s a vicious circle of motivation – and there’s not a lot of evidence that you’ll find yourself very happy down […]
So often as leaders/educators/parents, we are expected – expect ourselves – to have the right answer, right now. A fair percentage of the time, we might. But then again, a fair percentage of the time, we might not. I think one of the truest signs of a good leader (and […]