“Root to rise” is a fundamental cue in a yoga class. Also phrased as “ground down to lift up,” it reminds us that before we can fully extend or expand, we have to be firmly rooted. We have to be grounded before we can grow, or we will find ourselves wobbling or limiting our potential […]
Others
The Conductor as Yogi: Self-Care
“Self-care is never a selfish act — it is simply good stewardship of the only gift I have, the gift I was put on earth to offer others.” Parker Palmer, Let Your Life Speak Self-care has always been at the core of ancient traditions which evolved to help us seek and maintain balance in body, […]
The Conductor as Yogi: The Bigger Picture
Earth’s crammed with heaven, And every common bush afire with God, But only he who sees, takes off his shoes; The rest sit round it and pluck blackberries. Elizabeth Barrett Browning I recently came across this quote and had an immediate, visceral response. Brilliant! So insightful. Leave it to Elizabeth to knock it out of […]
Car Thoughts: Student Led Sectionals
“Whoever is doing the talking is doing the learning.” Jen York-Barr In this special car thoughts I will not only DESCRIBE how I use sectionals in rehearsal, I will show you! (Video recommended) I am a big believer in student ownership, and there are few better ways to accomplish this than building a culture of […]
Raise Your Voice: January Shivers
This is the seventh post in a series: https://choralnet.org/archives/665964 Happy New Year! I hope everyone was able to get some rest after the holiday concert season and enjoy some time with friends and family. Personally, I’m just regrouping after the break and continuing to work on our choral pieces for our March concert. So let’s […]
The Conductor as Yogi: Do One Thing
The beginning of the calendar year—ahhh! . . . Resolutions. Big plans. Massive change! And how long do those resolutions last? We know the statistics, that resolutions set on January 1st are often abandoned within the first month, depending on whose reporting you read. There are countless guides for determining and keeping resolutions to create […]