“Know Thyself” Ancient Greek maxim The new year traditionally brings resolutions—you know, the same ones we make most years and which, in about two weeks, sort of disappear . . . ? It’s hard to avoid the idea that we “should” be doing something new when the calendar rolls over. And yet, January 1st can […]
Leadership
Leading Voices: A Gift for the New Year
For this month’s blog, I would like to offer you a gift for the New Year. It is the gift of observation, with a twist of non-judgment. Obtaining the ability to observe selected interactions without judgment will transform your teaching and your relationship with yourself and others. It can bring new insights and revitalize your […]
The Conductor as Yogi: Dare to Pause
“Few things are so pressing that they cannot wait for a moment of breath.” T.K.V. Desikachar Maybe you have had this conversation, usually with family or friends who are not in music or in teaching: Them: “Are you on break now? How nice that you have all that time off!” Us: “Oh, I am never […]
Choral Potpourri/Choral Ethics: Let There Be Peace on Earth
“This will be our reply to violence: to make music more intensely, more beautifully, more devotedly than ever before.” Leonard Bernstein For the month of December, I’m rerunning some Choral Ethics blogs from years past with a few modifications where needed. Two of my MOST REQUESTED December Blogs will be making their yearly appearances, including […]
The Conductor as Yogi: It Does Not Go Unnoticed
We made it through the semester. Our return to in-person music making. I have been reading our singers’ reflection papers, their one-page response to three prompts: What did you learn musically? What did you learn beyond the music? What suggestions do you have for the future? On music, they wrote about re-learning how to sing […]
The Conductor as Yogi: Living Seasonally
I am intrigued by the wisdom of living seasonally. Taking cues from the shifts in nature, in daylight and temperature and foods that are fresh and available. Living in harmony with the rhythms of nature goes a long way towards making us feel well. Instead of fighting the cold or the heat, the dampness or […]