Latest Blog Posts

 (image: www.contactology.com)   In the middle of a rehearsal, it’s useful to be able to stop and get some feedback from the ensemble. Gauging the ensemble’s comfort level with a particular section, understanding of text, or even asking about the internal sound of a section from the singer’s perspective can lead to interesting and targeted […]

We have noted a sudden uptick in the number of colleagues asking for help as they defend their art from a pernicious attack by their administration.   Of course, when a music educator jumps to the defense of their program, they are said to be “protecting their job.” Should they enlist the testimony of an […]

Last week we launched a new ChoralBuzz feature, “Who’s in Your Choir . . . ?”  Each Friday we will share a photo of a notable person who sang in their school choir.  Beyond the obvious list of singers (yes, we will eventually highlight Kristin Chenoweth), we will also include actors, athletes, astronauts, and other […]

I based the previous two blog posts on a 1974 study by Professors Ronald Gallimore and Roland Tharp published in Psychology Today in 1976. In 2004 they re-visited the research and re-evaluated the data, resulting in the following study (as always, I recommend reading it for yourself–it's not long).   They note that, "much of […]

SABBATICAL by Tim Sharp          For the last two months, I have engaged in a “deep dive.” I have had the opportunity and the time to follow some hunches, plunge into a network of ideas, and to complete projects of research and writing that have been developing over some time. The time-honored name for […]

(This is an excerpt from a column titled, “If Congress Were a Choir,” by Margaret Evans.  Used here with the gracious permission of the author and the Low Country Weekly, Beaufort, South Carolina.)   A choir is not a Democracy. It's not even a Republic. You might call it a dictatorship. But it's a voluntary […]