arrange • compose • conduct
Tonight is the Rockford Choirs’ Farewell Concert. For me, it’s a good time to reflect on the students saying goodbye. Have I served them? Are they walking away musically, intellectually, spiritually richer for having been in my choir? It’s easy to focus on the “stars” – the ones heading off […]
I’ve started training for a half-marathon later this summer. There are lots of things in life you can cram for: math tests, presentations at work, 16-bar solos for an audition. The things I care about, though, can’t be mastered in a day. Being a great parent. Making music with an […]
It’s hard to go against the current in society. It’s hard to listen to your heart and go in the direction you truly believe is best. Modern American society is great at discouraging individuals from being different. Cultural reinforcement of the norm has never been more pervasive. It’s ironic when […]
When you’re competent, you get asked to do things. What a flattering experience: to be trusted with a new project, a new job. But saying “yes” to every offer means taking time away from other important activities. The thing to do is look ahead. Where do you want to go? […]
I used to marvel at how many outstanding choir directors are also wonderful pianists. Seems a weird coincidence, doesn’t it? Why piano in particular? (As a comparison, I didn’t learn any significant piano skills until college.) It’s no coincidence. And it’s not because you need prodigious piano skills to be a great […]
There are increasing reminders that social media is having a profoundly damaging effect on people prone to depression. It’s profound because it lets them hide so thoroughly behind a facade of happiness. On social media, people don’t see us. They see the part of us we want them to see. […]
We are all prone to making mistakes. It’s part of being human and it’s an important part of growth. Here’s a concept I’m working to imprint into my sons brains – and my students, too. [Something happens – forgot homework, dropped and broke a plate, etc.] Son: Oops, I dropped […]
When I teach relative minors to my students, I always end with a call and response of them giving the relative minors to a given major key. I start with easier ones and build. What’s the relative minor of C major? A minor D Major? B minor F Major? D […]
I have a bunch of smart musicians in the Rockford Aces: guys who show a lot of interest in arranging and composing, and a lot of discrimination about quality. I almost never get an arrangement from them for the group. I think it’s their good taste that keeps them from […]
Did you learn mnemonics for notes growing up? I did. Every Good Boy, Great Big Diamonds, All Cows Eat, and so on. No matter how well you know your mnemonics, you can’t really read music. It’s a transitional phase. It’s like a five-year-old starts out sounding every letter to figure […]