“I like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening carefully. Most people never listen.” Ernest Hemingway Listening is a very important component of our Choral profession. We listen to our choruses in rehearsal for mistakes. We listen to the concerts we attend and the concerts we conduct. We listen to music for […]
pandemic
Choral Potpourri/Choral Ethics: Favorite Teacher
I am taking a bit of a Choral Ethics break during the next few weeks, and this is a Choral Ethics Blog repeat. My review of a new biography of Margaret Hillis will be on December 1. But if you have a Choral Ethics dilemma or query or comment in the mean time, please email […]
Choral Potpourri/Choral Ethics: Overwhelmed
“Sometimes when you’re overwhelmed by a situation – when you’re in the darkest of darkness – that’s when your priorities are reordered.” Phoebe Snow Sometimes I search for the epigraph for my ChoralEthics blogs before I write them and other times, after. I usually know exactly what, or whose, quote I want but many times […]
Choral Potpourri/Choral Ethics: Adversity
“The friend in my adversity I shall always cherish most. I can better trust those who helped to relieve the gloom of my dark hours than those who are so ready to enjoy with me the sunshine of my prosperity.” Ulysses S. Grant As September winds down, we will deal with a few more Choral […]
Choral Potpourri/ Choral Ethics: Set in Our Ways
“The only means of strengthening one’s intellect is to make up one’s mind about nothing, to let the mind be a thoroughfare for all thoughts.” John Keats To say the least, it’s been a challenging time for us all. As recently as three years ago, we could not have imagined wearing masks in rehearsals or […]
Choral Potpourri/Choral Ethics: Pretension
“Great artists are people who find the way to be themselves in their art. Any sort of pretension induces mediocrity in art and life alike.” Margot Fonteyn Jamie*’s highly auditioned and highly respected community chorus sing at a (you can guess) high level. Though not a professional chorus, they are often used by a local […]