arrange • compose • conduct
The one thing I find most lacking in vocal arrangements and compositions in 2016 is timbral variation. Because we live in an choral age that glorifies harmony, it’s easy to slog through page after page of four- or six-part chords. But there are many more options than homophonic harmony. The most consistent genre offenders to me […]
When you’re feeling paralyzed by a huge project, the best advice is to just take the next step. Why? Two important reasons. Taking the next step is all you can do. The only way to get to the finish line is one step at a time. Taking the next step reminds you: […]
It’s just over three weeks away. You likely have your mind made up. So does everyone else. This is me giving you permission to return to your center, to leave the presidential race behind. Return to your center: close down Twitter, turn off the TV news, don’t hit post on that Facebook […]
I’m in the middle of Julie Lythcott-Haims’ fabulous recent book, How To Raise An Adult. In it, she lays out the ways our society has gone astray in child-rearing, leading to a rash of overgrown children rather than adults. She then lays out a number of suggestions for how to right the ship, giving […]
I’ve been stagnating with Finale 2008 for a long time. I waited to upgrade until around 2011, and then I was seriously considering jumping ship (after 20+ years) to Sibelius. But at just that moment, the programming team was let go from Sibelius, and began a brand-new notation project with Steinberg. […]
I’m always seeking ways to further empower my students, and one way I discovered this year builds on the back of the seven or so “Aces Standards” that are in our folders. These are songs that we sing every year, forming the backbone of a repertoire to enable them to sing a […]
Thirteen By Three Thirteen three-word phrases I aspire to. 1. Love deeply always. 2. Say thank you. 3. Trust without hesitation. 4. Do better tomorrow. 5. Don’t be afraid. 6. Stand for something. 7. Have big ideas. 8. Make art daily. 9. Read with gusto. 10. Silliness is important. 11. Know your people. 12. Family comes first. […]
What if, instead of performing music for your audience in concert, you invited the audience along with you to experience it? The perspective shift is big, and I think it’s a better reflection of the aims we should have. Performing for has an essence of rote that belies the goals of a choir. […]
The 2016 ACDA-Michigan Fall Conference is just a few weeks away (Oct. 28-29), and last week I got to connect with headliner Z. Randall Stroope and ask him a few questions about what he’ll be sharing and about his musical worldview. Please enjoy it by clicking here!
Music is elementary. I mean that in several ways. It’s elementary because that’s generally the last time that every public school student is expected to participate in music as part of their education. [*] It’s elementary because I am not sure I know a more fundamental cultural tradition than music. It hits us […]