arrange • compose • conduct
I got to watch about 50 brilliant choir teachers give up their weekend over the last two days. At the end of their stressful first week of school, they drove from across Michigan to volunteer for MSVMA. Seven left directly after school to make it to Big Rapids for an […]
Enjoy this guest post from East Zeeland HS Choir teacher Jonathan Van Eck. I asked him to write it after he shared the number above on Facebook. 285:30. That’s 285 hours and 30 minutes. That’s the amount of time I spent working this summer. Divide that out and it’s almost […]
I’m currently reading Brené Brown’s new book, Rising Strong. It’s about the process about getting back up after failure. (Actually, I’ve been reading a lot of books about the value of failure lately.) What has struck me as I go through this book is that she, a social scientist, leans heavily […]
Shaw on the nature of the choir: “Any worthy amateur choral organization is built around only a single idea extended in two ways: a mutual and high regard for the music which is being performed, and a mutual and high regard for all the people with whom it is being […]
Day Two, you’re nowhere. All the hard work is in front of you – the choir hasn’t done more than sight read. Becoming an ensemble takes time and effort. But you’ve done Day One. You’ve started. No choice now but to do the hard work and head towards your dreams. As Tibetan Buddhist […]
Today is our 13th First Day of School – thirteenth since we finished grad school and started teaching. It’s also our 8th First Day (in Rockford), our 3rd (Mandy full time), our 9th (with kids at home). It’s our 5th First Day of putting a child on the school bus. It’s my 34th First Day since I started kindergarten in […]
Welcome to choir. You can expect to… Make music every day. Learn to speak and read music. Strive for artistry. Express deep emotions in public. (Don’t worry, you’ll be in a group.) Fail on your way to success. Get a solo (maybe). Not get a solo you want (likely). Sing music that […]
I had my first ever “viral” post this week. As of this morning, my quote art of one of the Ken Robinson quotes from last week’s blog has been shared 193 times on Facebook and seen by nearly 14,000 people. It’s been cool to watch, but I have tried to remain mindful […]
More and more we are called to educate our students as humans as well as musicians. Choir seems to be the one place in their schedule where our students can relax, be human, and release their anxiety about college/standardized tests/just being a teenager in 2015. My wife has created a fabulous website for teachers […]
Summer is great – full of the impromptu time with family and friends that being a choir teacher doesn’t often afford during the school year. But the impromptu gets hard. I think human beings crave routine. I can’t wait for the regular schedule of a bus arriving, predictable rehearsal times, and being […]