Having a guest clinician in front of your choir is like having a good proofreader.
Anything longer than two sentences, I want a proofreader.
It’s not because I think I’m a poor writer – I’ve got a handle on the basics. It’s simply this: mistakes creep into everyone’s writing. We can become blind to our own mistakes, reading what we think we wrote instead of what is actually on the page. A proofreader cuts right through that, without fail. They see things I can’t anymore.
The things I’m worried about for emails with impact, critical texts, and even social media posts are:
- clarity of tone
- minimal typos
- accuracy of information
- thoroughness
Given those goals, I’m asking for proofreading help – and providing it – all the time.
As a conductor, I think often about the value of having a guest worth with my ensemble as similar to having a proofreader. They cut through the things I’ve stopped noticing, and help my ensemble perform at their peak.
The goals are similar, the challenges are related, and the solution is the same: get a proofreader.