arrange • compose • conduct
Formal innovation means nothing without artistry. I’m reading a fabulous novel with virtuosic formal artistry. Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell is actually seven nested novels with interwoven plots. But though the form of his novel is compelling, it wouldn’t be nearly enough to sustain a reader if he wasn’t also a fabulous author. Beethoven’s formal […]
As of last Friday, I have completed my service to MSVMA as staff for the Summer Conference. For four years, I had the honor of working alongside some amazing colleagues in programming, planning, and coordinating the conference, and while I’m excited to be refocusing my volunteer time on the All-State […]
It’s rare to be present at the start of something new and important, and I feel that I got that chance last night at the inaugural performance of Mirabai, the new professional women’s chorus conducted by artistic director Sandra Snow. It should go without saying that the performance, titled “All I Was […]
In Mandy’s talk, she talked about paying attention to how you spend your time, and how that makes you feel. I think, just as important, is to pay attention to the little coincidences – the syncronicities – that tell you that you’re headed in the right direction. When you embark on […]
My wife Mandy delievered a powerful TED-style talk at the MSVMA Summer Conference today. In it she talked about the tools for busy choir directors to remain centered and grounded in their over-filled lives. Some favorite lines: “Nobody in this room has a lot of free time – we have to […]
If you can leave a day with one new thing you know how to do, that is a good day. A conference, then, is an embarrassment of riches – new ideas, new friends, new strategies and tricks, every hour of the day. It leaves attendees exhausted from all they’ve taken in. All the […]
Yesterday I heard an hour concert from one of thousands of village bands nationwide. The band was made up of amateurs from all walks of life: physicians, retirees, lawyers. They gave up their Monday evenings for rehearsal and performance, simply for the love (AMAteur) of the music. It reminded me of […]
One hundred years ago today, Ireland lost the brilliant young poet Francis Ledwidge in Belgium as a soldier in World War I. Ledwidge only published a single volume of poetry during his life; additional works were published posthumously. His poetry gravitates to natural images, notably in a set of poems that imagine months of the year as women – May, […]
I have a full life. I juggle multiple jobs and always have more projects than time to devote to them. It’s a freelance life, and I love it, but it’s packed. Today is a good day to reflect on why, in the midst of all my jobs, I devote time to writing […]
I am incredibly thrilled to be joining the adjunct faculty of GRCC, the best community college music department in Michigan, as director of Shades of Blue – the vocal jazz ensemble founded by the inimitable Duane Davis. You can read more about why I think vocal jazz is of value here. (And many […]