When our students start to feel frustrated by that which doesn’t come easy, by that which is a profound challenge, by that which makes them question their efforts, I can think of...

When you think of what we do, and remember the words of Albert Einstein when he stated: “It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge.”...

I am convinced that half the problem with teaching students in a band is that many of them have a very distorted vantage point from which they hear the group, by nature of where...

As I look out at my students while rehearsing, I so often see bad habits reveal themselves. And what gets me is that I have mentioned those bad habits over and over and over. It...

I like a fast-paced rehearsal. No, I love a fast-paced rehearsal. I think I can keep my students awake and energized better, and get more done in less time. But that’s me. I also...

In the first moments of your next rehearsal, after getting the students quiet and focused, go to the board and with no words of explanation simply write these words: “I haven't...

I was recently speaking at a workshop for band directors and was asked a fantastic question: “Why don’t most band directors treat percussionists like the rest of the members of...

I am often asked by band directors for suggestions about books to read.  And I always worry about doing so for fear it will be like recommending a favorite restaurant to a friend...

Cicero, the great philosopher, held that one of The Six Mistakes of Man was “Insisting that a thing is impossible because we cannot accomplish it.” When I think something not...