arrange • compose • conduct
Don’t worry, there’ll be another one along any minute. Sometimes I write my post by typing a title, with as little conscious thought as possible. It’s just something I’ve noticed, or feel in that moment. A little pause to think. And then I start to express what I feel about […]
Make it personal. The best educators make it personal. They tailor the instruction to the student. They adjust their lesson plans in the moment depending on what’s happening in the room. They teach from motivations of curiosity, passion, and love that they want to share with the individuals they’re teaching. […]
Say it again. As I have continued to write daily on this site for year after year, I occasionally have gotten worried that I won’t have more insights to offer. But I remind myself: this might not be a new insight, but it might reach a new person. Especially if […]
Creativity isn’t a skill. A skill is something that you get better at over time. In my experience, you don’t get better at creativity. You get more versed in accessing it, you get better at recognizing better creative impulses, but you don’t get better at being creative. That’s because creativity […]
I dare you to take a longer break. What was the last day you completely didn’t think about work? For me, I even worked every day I was home with COVID this winter. My last day without work thoughts was in early August, on my off-the-grid family vacation. For better […]
It’s my annual tradition to publish my repertoire list for my ensembles. Here’s this year’s Rockford Aces repertoire. The Aces endeavor to sing in as many musical styles as possible each year, with no discrimination except quality of music. We had maybe the biggest Aces Concert ever, our fifteenth anniversary […]
Tell me what’s the worst part of a conducting job, and tell me why it’s auditions. It can be ensemble auditions or solo auditions – any situation in which I’m expected to make decisions via audition. I don’t have anything but the best interests of the students who audition, and […]
Happy almost-end of the school year! I’m celebrating by looking ahead to next school year/concert year; aren’t you? Commissioning is, I believe, one of the most powerful ways of impacting both future musicians and the future of music. I’ve written plenty about that here. I have just two slots left […]
Assumption of Positive Intent is hard to practice. It’s easy to assume malicious intent – that people are out to get you, or don’t have your best interests at heart, or just don’t care enough about what you care about. In Dr. Brené Brown’s Dare To Lead, she writes, “Daring […]
The golden rule of improv applies well beyond comedy. The most famous dictum of improv comedy is “Yes, and.” When someone adds something to the scene, you must accept it and work with it as you continue. Only through that open collaboration can you create something all the improvisers share […]