“If you want something done, ask a busy person to do it. The more things you do, the more you can do.” Lucille Ball Right about now we are all gearing up for the next six or seven weeks of insanity. Our concerts loom ahead and so does the end of […]
Choral Potpourri: The Power of “Thank You”
“Appreciation can make a day – even change a life. Your willingness to put it into words is all that is necessary.” Margaret Cousins Not all of the Choral Ethic comments I receive are about “conductors behaving badly.” Some are wonderful, touching life and career affirming. Today we’ll speak about how a few […]
Choral Potpourri: Pettiness
“Don’t sweat the petty things and don’t pet the sweaty things.” George Carlin Jackie* and I became friends at a long ago ACDA national conference and have stayed in contact for several decades. She directs a community chorus two states over and recently emailed me about a situation which came up during her […]
Choral Potpourri: Perfection is Over-Rated
Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.” Henry Van Dyke Many Choral Ethics problems stem from perfection issues, or the perception of what perfection […]
Choral Potpourri: Ethics Should Matter
“We are all here on earth to help others; what on earth the others are here for I don’t know.” W. H. Auden What does it mean to be an ethical choral conductor/director? Our own Choral Ethics code should be a model of behaviors for how we treat our singers, but shouldn’t it […]
Choral Potpourri: Collaborating with Other Arts
“Works of art make rules; rules do not make works of art.” Claude Debussy If you read Tim Sharp’s ChoralBlog on Monday, you know the title was, “Collaboration Outside Our Comfort Level.” I meant to write about collaboration as well and his […]