arrange • compose • conduct
I think it’s too easy in a choral rehearsal to skip talk about how the music works. We want to train smart musicians, but in the moment, we’re solving problems to improve the piece we’re working on. Most of us are far more likely to reach for vocal technique to solve the problem […]
We need to feel temporary discomfort to get anything worthwhile done. Trouble is, society teaches us to meticulously avoid pain. The “right to pursue happiness” that we champion is often translated as the right to a discomfort-free existence. I will never do anything of value while remaining perfectly comfortable. Learning to play a new piece. Composing […]
My choir came back from break sounding solidly better than they did in their performance three weeks ago. Wait. What? More in tune, more musical, more sensitive to the ensemble around them. After more than 15 days of not singing together? Yep. Here’s what I think happens. (this is not close to the […]
There are three contributors to success, but only one is in your control.
I wrapped up my reading year with seven books in December – more than a quarter of my 2015 reading. Part of this was the break: a few days away can do wonders. But another big part was chain-reading. Like chain smoking, it’s using the last book to get started into the next book. Here […]
I hate to be the one to break it to you: break’s almost over.
Teachers and students: you are likely beginning again tomorrow.
It’s time to play the music, It’s time to light the lights. It’s time to get things started On The Muppet Show tonight! Have you ever re-watched the first season of The Muppet Show? They had no idea what they were doing. I don’t mean technically – clearly Jim Henson […]
My 2016 New Year’s Resolution is simple.
2015 has been a year to remember. Here’s a look back at what I did this year. Writing I published this blog every day, by my count 367 total posts. Of those, I wrote 363; I published four wonderful guest blogs from Jeremy Fox, Justin Binek, Jonathan Van Eck, and my son Owen. I totaled around […]
Endings and beginnings have rituals. New Year’s/New Year’s Eve. Christmas/Christmas Eve. Last day of vacation/first day of school. Cherish the penultimate. The day before the last day. The rituals of endings and beginnings can lead to a locked-in feeling. You are doing what you always do. The penultimate day is free of […]