Category Archives: Music is work

unattainable

Posted on May 3, 2014 by

R – “Let’s realize first that the arts are not an ivory tower of retreat. They are a doing. They are a making. They are sweat, strain, cramps, blisters, tears, blood, profanity and mocking laughter.” – Robert Shaw Vivaldi’s Gloria, … Continue reading →

Posted in Music is work, Performance, Rehearsal | 1 Comment

three strikes part 2 (and 3, and 4, and…)

Posted on January 11, 2014 by

R – “The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something” – Randy Pausch. Last week I did my best to articulate … Continue reading →

Posted in Etcetera, Music is work | 1 Comment

spot on teaching

Posted on March 23, 2013 by

R – Yesterday I had correspondences with two colleagues of mine, both of whom coincidentally are former students as well. One of them forwarded me a wonderful blog post on the value of music education to 21st century learners (please … Continue reading →

Posted in Music is work, Rehearsal | 7 Comments

letters to PCC: not-so-psycho analysis

Posted on October 13, 2012 by

R – I don’t sing so much any more (conducting really is my first love) but when I was teaching in Vermont in the early 1990’s I decided for a term to commute to Worcester, Massachusetts to perform with the Worcester Chorale under the … Continue reading →

Posted in Music is work, Rehearsal | 2 Comments

role playing

Posted on October 2, 2012 by

R – Role playing… I think that we as music educators do this better than anyone else I can think of. The variety of hats we wear seems to transcend anyone else’s definition of “normal” except for ours. Think about … Continue reading →

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analytical

Posted on July 24, 2012 by

R – I was watching the symphonic band rehearsal at MSYM yesterday morning with an instrumental colleague of mine when he leaned over and asked if I teach concepts to my choirs with metaphors or with technical explanations… energy being … Continue reading →

Posted in Music is work, Rehearsal | 6 Comments

warmups: ear training

Posted on April 28, 2012 by

R – One of the underrated opportunities available to us as music teachers is to utilize warmups as much more than “warming up” (choral warmups). One of the biggies for me will always be training the ear. Two ideas… Constantly … Continue reading →

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isolated disciplines

Posted on December 10, 2011 by

R – Robert Shaw used to have at the core of his philosophy that each of the choral disciplines must be mastered and they must be mastered independently in order for a choir to do the job of re-creating another … Continue reading →

Posted in Music is work, Rehearsal, Warmups | 3 Comments

articulation

Posted on November 26, 2011 by

R – I say it as often as I can: “Singing is fun, but music is work. The reason we commit to the work is because it’s a labor of love.” Articulation is a sticky subject for me because if … Continue reading →

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