arrange • compose • conduct
Musical plagiarism can be hard to explain for non-musicians. Because of the ubiquity of certain chord progressions, there are things that sound like copying but are really more like convergent evolution. (Like, bats didn’t copy their wings from birds…) A distant cousin, Rob Mathes, recently served as an expert witness defending Led Zeppelin in a […]
Sometimes we’re cautious with young students about insisting on public performance. Do the work, learn the pieces, move on. Young musicians can be apprehensive about performing, and of course we have all heard the nightmare stories of blank minds in kids’ recitals. But there is a profound value in having the […]
What the world needs now…is compassion. We all need the ability to see every other person as worthy of love, as precious. I personally know adults (and so do you) who seem to have no compassion for any other person. They mock, they disparage, they criticize. They never build up, find common […]
I’ve been really enjoying watching my teacher friends travel, relax, having summer fun. (Michigan lakes, of course, figure large.) The break from teaching is, in fact, an important part of their effectiveness within the current system. Why? What is this break for? For teachers, it’s for building a stock of infinite patience. […]
It’s very simple. Your students started reading in kindergarten. By first grade, most could get through a moderate picture book. By third grade, a straightforward children’s novel. Many don’t start seriously trying to read music until middle or high school. At that point, their taste is at the musical equivalent of “The Hunger […]
After a 3-year hiatus since my wife returned to full-time teaching, I’ve elected to take on a few private students this summer. I opened a limited number of slots, and offered lessons in voice/repertoire, audition skills, theory, composition/arranging, etc. I recently finished first lessons with most of my students. First lessons are […]
How do you tune into that quiet voice? The one that guides you, and is so hard to hear, especially with the noise of the world coming in from all sides. Here are some actions I’ve found reliable for getting in touch with it. Write. Write whenever, whatever – eventually I can hear […]
Not long ago, I had the luck to be visiting family when my dad took part in an interview rehearsal with a conductor candidate for one of the community choirs he sings in. I joined my dad in the baritone section and got to spend an evening singing music next to him […]
I met an old friend at Blissfest yesterday. He’s a big music lover and supporter of the arts – volunteers for the festival, runs his own smaller festival, and knows many of the best musicians on tour in Northern Michigan. My friend told me he plays bass and guitar and has had several […]
I know a lot of choir directors–a lot of professionals in general–who every year try to do a little more. Add one more educational activity, add one more community-outreach performance, add one more piece to the repertoire. What if, instead of more, you focused on better? Make the moments more […]