Making Things Happen in 2013

Happy New Year, friends! As I write this, I'm 38,000 feet in the air in Delta seat 42A headed to Utah for a Danyew family ski trip (my first!). We've had a wonderful holiday adventure so far, including three Christmases, three states, and a harrowing six-hour trip (that should have taken two) in the midst of Winter Storm Euclid. You could say that we're making the most of the holidays/Winter Break. In between all the traveling, skiing, and butter cookie-eating, I've been reflecting on 2012 and setting goals for 2013.

Don't you just love this time of the year? I do. Everything feels fresh and new with the calendar change and though I'm not one for making resolutions, planning thoughtful, meaningful goals and setting up ways to achieve them fires me up to live the life I want to live and do my work with passion.

Raise your hand if you've jotted down a short list of goals at the last possible moment on New Year's Eve (in order to make the magical January 1st deadline). Raises hand. When you look back, how many of those goals did you accomplish? How many moved you forward? No more! I want to set authentic, purposeful goals that I can actually attain.

This week, inspired by Lara Casey's Goal-Setting Steps, I've been doing just that. Guys, the process is so important to setting real, attainable goals. Think about this past year. What did you make happen? What worked well? What didn't work? I spent an afternoon last week pondering these questions and writing out my answers. Beginning with the positive, Step 1 is making a list of things you're grateful for and things that worked well in 2012. Here's what my "worked well" list looks like:

WCMW // the organization and planning, the community support, the quality of the music, and the overall experience PhD at Eastman // I love the work I am doing, the things I am learning, the opportunities and experiences, and the people I work with Living in Rochester // city + country + lakes + beach + mountains, culture, dining, separation of home/work, people our age Setting boundaries // more productive during working hours and able to enjoy time away from work Making decisions // better at getting through emails, taking risks, being confident in my abilities, taking an active role instead of a passive one, and making things happen New website/brand // represents me as an artist, a teacher, a writer, and an entrepreneur; better way of staying in touch with professional network Musical growth // recitals, musicianship, learning new things, surrounding myself with other musicians Giving // helping those in need, living with less, compassion, living "Love Does" Grace // living it in action (calm, patient, peaceful, joyful) Traditions // making new traditions with SD while honoring the old, living in the present and focusing more on what matters Healthier choices // exercising more, eating less meat and no milk, buying local, drinking more water Reading for pleasure // read three books since summer; inspiring, motivating, refreshing

Basically, this comes down to three points (skipping ahead to Step 4): 1. Never stop learning. Be honest and authentic in what you do. 2. Continue striving for musical excellence. Share this with others. 3. Work to live. Set boundaries, know your priorities, and focus on what matters.

Likewise, there were several things that didn't work well last year. This is Step 2. These are learning opportunities for the year to come:

Taking work personally // investing too much of myself into work Worry // about what others think, about finances, about the future, about relationships Lack of boundaries // separating work and personal life at home Lack of inspiration // teaching full-time without being refueled, without rest, and without being inspired Selfish intentions // in decision-making, in marriage, in giving, in relationships Taking things for granted // thinking that newlywed life should be bliss, not focusing on what matters Wrong priorities // paying too much attention to things that don't matter

Again, three basic points (Step 5): 1. Invest yourself in your priorities. Give with intention. 2. Do more of what fires you up. Be inspired. Take time to rest and be filled. 3. Give thanks and be grateful every day.

Step 3 is making a list of what inspires you, invigorates you, and fires you up. Make a Pinterest board for inspiration and to keep yourself on track this year - see mine here (in progress!). Y'all, this was eye-opening for me. There it is, in black and white, exactly where I am today, how far I came in the last year, and the things that inspire me most. Amazing! Now I can begin thinking ahead with purpose (Step 6). Where do I see myself in 50 years? Why do I do what I do? What is my vision? I spent a little time during the flight reflecting on these questions and sketching out my initial responses. More to come as I continue the refining process. In the meantime, please feel free to share your goals for 2013 (if you have them already) and/or your reflection on what went well/not so well this past year in the comments below. Looking forward to sharing more of my goal-setting process with you in the days to come!

Love, Ashley

2012: A Year in Review

Happy Holidays, friends! I hope this finds you off celebrating with leftover Christmas cookies, mugs of hot chocolate by the fire, and good conversations with family and friends. For me, New Year's Eve is a time to not only look forward into what the New Year holds but to reflect on all the memories of the current year. Here are a few of my favorite moments: Image credit: personal

I applied to two doctoral programs in December of 2011 and at the end of January, we took a trip to Rochester for doctoral interviews (five in all). It was a whirlwind 48-hour trip!

I started teaching a new-to-me class at Fitchburg State in January - Commonwealth of the Arts. I continued teaching two sections of Class Piano, which brought my total number of students to over 45. What an honor!

Image credit: personal

Steve and I presented our first-ever Children's Concert in February to children ages 2-5. Originally, we were told to expect 8-10 children. About a week before the program, we found out that 35 were signed up to attend! The morning of the event, however, 56 children plus parents and teachers crowded in to find a seat. It was a great experience and "Saxophone Steve" was a bit hit! Read our recap post here.

Image credit: personal

We presented an informal lecture recital for the community in March called "The Art of the Spiritual." See video excerpts of this program here, here, and here.

Image credit: personal

We planned a quick 36-hour getaway to Maine at the end of March - shopping and dining in Portland, cliff walks along the ocean's edge, and visiting Stonewall Kitchen. Also, the President and Snoop Dogg were there. No big deal.

Image credit: Eastman School of Music

I got accepted into Eastman's PhD program in March and signed the final papers in April to enroll in the fall. I was over the moon with excitement!

Dr. Susan Conkling leading the WCMW Community Sing in May 2012. Image credit: personal

Our second year of the Westminster Chamber Music Workshop was a great success! We organized four larger concerts, one each Saturday night in May. See video clips here, here, here, and here.

Lake Junaluska, NC. Image credit: personal

We spent two weeks on the road in June - apartment hunting in Rochester, a visit with my parents in GA, and a week at Music and Worship Arts Week at Lake Junaluska, NC (read more here). Also, eating as much southern barbeque as possible.

We spent July teaching and packing for our big move - July 29! Thanks to the help of some very able-bodied friends, everything went very smoothly. Naturally, we spent August unpacking and establishing NYS residency. Steve picked back up with work and I began studying for placement exams: counterpoint and Renaissance music history.

The beach at Lake Ontario. Image credit: personal

We took the opportunity over Labor Day weekend to explore the Finger Lakes - wineries one day, beach the next!

Image credit: personal

We celebrated our first wedding anniversary in October with a day trip to Letchworth State Park. It was gorgeous!

We spent Thanksgiving in CT with Steve's parents and friends of the family and came back to the first snow dusting of the season. It was magical.

Image credit: personal

We prepared for Choral Sunday at church on December 9 - Vivaldi's Gloria and three Advent hymn arrangements by SD and got our first Christmas tree. Then, on December 14 tragedy struck at Sandy Hook Elementary School, devastating the quaint community, Steve's hometown. Our hearts just broke at the magnitude of this loss and for all the families who were affected. We sent heart-shaped messages of love and support as part of Hearts of Hope. Join the project here.

I finished the first semester of my doctoral program on 12/21, just in time to celebrate with SD and pack for our big holiday adventure - five states in two weeks!

So here it is - the last day of 2012. This year gave me new teaching opportunities and professional experiences and time to visit new places. I got accepted into Eastman's PhD program, SD and I made the move back to Rochester, and we celebrated our first of hopefully many sweet anniversaries. God is good and we are blessed. Here's to 2013!

Happy New Year, y’all!

Previously: 2011: A Year in Review

Our Christmas Card - 2012

 

Merry Christmas, friends!  Wishing you all a wonderful holiday with friends and loved ones and a healthy, happy 2013!

P.S.  See our 2011 Christmas card here.

Image Credit: personal Design Inspiration: Amanda Jane Jones

Happiest of Holidays

Wishing you a wonderful holiday season and a joyful New Year!

Dona Nobis Pacem

Friday morning, I picked out a cute outfit and fixed my hair, hoping to take a picture with SD in front of this tree in Eastman's Main Hall at the annual Holiday Sing.  It's my favorite Eastman tradition and SD and I have been looking forward to it ever since we knew we'd be moving back here this year.  I cleaned off my desk and admired our little Christmas tree.  I printed a few handouts for my class presentation later in the day.  I thought about giving myself a manicure over the weekend.

And then, I heard SD exclaim from the other room - "What?!"  I rushed in to see what was wrong.

"There was a shooting at my elementary school," he said.

We watched in horror as the news reports rolled in and pictures of 1st graders being led to the nearby fire station flashed across the homepage of CNN, just one mile away from Steve's parents' house.  "We were just there at Thanksgiving," I thought to myself.  We were numb.

The closing song of the Holiday Sing, "Dona Nobis Pacem," sung in a 3-part round by all who are in attendance is normally our favorite part of the event.  Now, standing in front of this beautiful tree, surrounded by the hundreds of people that had gathered in the Main Hall that morning, we contemplated the entirely new meaning of this text in the midst of such tragedy and heartache.  I fought back tears as we sang:

Dona nobis pacem.  Grant us peace.

Later in the day, we found out that most of the victims were children - twenty 6- and 7-year-olds - and my heart broke into a million pieces.  Those families, those teachers, that community.  Sandy Hook is an idyllic New England town and it's become somewhat of a home to me in the 4 1/2 years since SD and I started dating.  That fire station they keep showing on the news?  They have a lobsterfest in the summer and they sell Christmas trees and wreaths between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  We pass it every time we come into town.  Treadwell Park is where SD and I had a picnic lunch on my first visit to CT.  That elementary school is where SD was assigned Georgia in the "parade of states" (it's the reason we danced to "Georgia On My Mind" at our wedding).  He made a giant peach and wheeled it around in a little red wagon.  It's where he first learned to play the saxophone.  That auditorium where the vigil was held and where the President spoke?  That's the stage where SD performed, soloed, and graduated.  This is home.

There is no explanation for the events of last week.  There are no answers.  What can we do?  We can pray, we can grieve with the rest of the nation, we can hold on to those close to us.  We can live grateful lives.  We can give to those in need (see here, here, here, and here for a place to start).  Life is not the same.

How do we move on from such a tragedy?  Leonard Bernstein once said, "This will be our reply to violence: to make music more intensely, more beautifully, more devotedly than ever before."  Yes.  As musicians, making music and sharing it with the community is a way that we can give back, a way to contribute meaning.  This is the time of year that we sing hymns of faith and hope and peace; we sing of Joy coming into the world and we prepare our hearts anew for the coming of the Prince of Peace.  So sing with passion, play with your whole heart, and lead with conviction.  Focus on what matters.  And in the midst of this overwhelming tragedy, may God grant us all peace.

Image Credit: personal

Three Hymn Arrangements for Advent

Last Sunday was Choral Sunday at church, complete with a performance of Vivaldi's "Gloria," Handel's Organ Concerto as prelude and postlude, and three Advent hymns that SD orchestrated for the occasion. It's so much fun to sing hymns with a chamber orchestra, don't you think? 

Seeing as how Advent isn't quite over yet, I thought it might be nice to let y'all know about these arrangements in case you're looking for a little something extra for your upcoming services.

Three Hymn Arrangements for Advent

1. O Come, O Come, Emmanuel (listen here)
2. Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus (tune: Hyfrydol) (listen here)
3. Lo, He Comes with Clouds Descending (listen here)

These arrangements are for organ, strings, trumpet, and oboe (though instrumentation is flexible) and may be purchased individually.  Read more and take a look at the scores here.

Image Credit: personal

On Teaching

Last week, I found out that one of my former students in Massachusetts passed away suddenly.  Ironically (or perhaps not), I thought about Ed Sunday night and told Steve, "I should write him a note this week and see how he's doing."  Later, I found out that he died the next day.  Life is short, friends; too short to leave things unsaid, to worry about what others will think, to value things that don't matter.  Act now.  Love now.  Give now.  Focus on what matters. Ed was 73 years old when he began taking piano lessons from me in the summer of 2010.  I'll never forget that first week - he came in with a stack of big note, EZ-read piano books, a mini audio recorder, and an enormous amount of self determination.  We started at the beginning: landmark notes (Frances Clark method), folk songs, rote songs, and technic exercises.  Within the first year, he was sightreading simple songs, harmonizing folk melodies, and playing teacher-student duets in the studio's spring recital.  He was dedicated.

In our second year of study, he began learning key signatures and counting in unusual meters.  He performed solo in the studio recital earlier this year.  Our last lesson before I moved was at the end of July.  In those final weeks, Ed began asking questions about chords, harmonic progressions, and inversions.  He was curious and he truly loved learning.

Every week when he came into his lesson I would ask, "How are you doing today?"  His response always caught me off guard: "Oh, I'm much better, thank you."  "What do you mean 'much better'?"  I'd say.  "Were you sick?"  "No, I'm fine.  It's just that people always pay attention when you say 'I'm doing much better,'" he'd say with a grin.  I smile when I think of him looking down now, saying, "I'm doing much better, thank you."

What a privilege we have in teaching.

Teaching to me is not just about music or experiences.  It's about people - people like Ed who want to build on a lifelong love of music, people like Bobby who love to create, and people like Matthew who love to explore and build with musical patterns.  What an opportunity we have as teachers to engage with others, interact, and share musical experiences.  I am so grateful.

Happy birthday, darling

Happy birthday to this handsome fella today!  I so admire your patient and kind heart.  I am more and more grateful for you every day!  Thank you for being my husband and my best friend.  I love you!

Love, Speak, Give

The phrase, "Love, speak, give with intention" appears on my lock screen as a constant reminder to be more intentional about life.  It reminds me to do small deeds with great love, choose words carefully and intentionally, and give with joy.  This month, I've been intentional about gratitude and really acknowledging the good gifts we have been given.  As we celebrate Thanksgiving and families and football and turkey and cranberry sauce this weekend, I hope you sit a little longer, hug a little tighter, speak with intention, and give to others as much as you are able.  "Now thank we all our God with hearts and hands and voices..."

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!

Building a Successful Children's Choir Program

So, you want to start a children's choir. Awesome!

Wondering where to start and what to do first? 

Here are a few ideas and suggestions for getting started and building a new choir program, based on my experience starting and directing a children's choir program at a small church in rural Massachusetts.

*Disclosure: I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

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Building a Successful Children's Choir Program

Getting Started

The first step in building a new program is choosing a rehearsal time and setting age parameters. Will you rehearse during the week or on Sundays? Will you rehearse throughout the school year, or just for a season?

Consider the children you have in your congregation who may be interested in singing in choir. I started out with children in grades 1-6 so that we’d have a group of about 12. If you have enough interest, consider dividing the children into two age groups: K-2 and 3-6.

Once these pieces are in place, then you can start thinking about an overall theme for the year.

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Choosing a Theme

An overall theme can guide your planning, music selection, and activities, and foster engagement among those participating.

For the first year, I decided to build on an idea from a children's choir I had worked with in the past - "The Image of God." The visuals were things like film strips and photographs and each month, we explored a new way that we are made in God's image.

The second year, I planned an "Around the World" theme with music from various countries, flags, passports, and international prayers like Alan Paton’s “For Courage to Do Justice” (United Methodist Hymnal #456):

"Show me where love and hope and faith are needed,
and use me to bring them to those places. AMEN."

Once you have a theme, begin planning ways for the children to participate in worship throughout the year.

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Participating in Worship

One of the things that sets a church children’s choir apart from a school or community choir is the element of spiritual formation. Talk about the importance of sharing music in worship (read more here and here), the difference between worship and performance, and the impact of the message we have to share. Help the children to see that singing praises to God is a true privilege and that they are leaders when they participate in worship.

In addition to a few anthems throughout the year (including a few with the adult choir), you might plan and coordinate the music for the children's Christmas play as another opportunity for them to sing in worship.

Set goals for the program—both musical and spiritual—and begin searching for music.

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Choosing Repertoire

Pull from a variety of musical resources (especially those that are free!): hymnals (consider choosing a Hymn-of-the-Month, which maybe gets incorporated into worship on a day they sing), octavos already in your choral library (unison/2-part or SA), online resources, music you have at home, and a few new anthems that you find through Sheet Music Plus, J.W. Pepper, and Choristers Guild.

Related post: Top 50 Favorite Anthems for Children’s Choirs

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An invitational postcard for our "Around the World" choir year

Getting the Word Out

Next, promote your new program and invite children to participate. Write short announcements in the bulletin and newsletter, post information on the church website, post a flier at the library or gym, and pass out fliers at the beginning of the school year.

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Planning for Rehearsal

As you begin planning for the first rehearsals of the year, try to include several elements of discovery:

• uncover a new symbol somewhere in the room each month (a new picture on the film strip or a new flag)

• collect “stamps” from each country you visit in passports made with copy and construction paper

• fill out scripture cards (if the children look up the month's verse at home, copy it down and bring it back in, they get a piece of candy from the scripture jar—added incentive!)

Begin preparing your choir room or rehearsal space with other visuals like a "Thankful Tree" (the children in my choir loved this so much, we kept it around in the spring and turned it into a "Good Attendance Tree") and a world map where you can mark all the places you travel throughout the choir year.

For fun, pull together a few silly songs and musical games to use as change-of-pace activities: Ham and Eggs (traditional) and Irish circle/line dances when you "visit" Ireland around St. Patrick's Day. I love Madelyn Bridges' book, Sing Together, Children.

In a typical rehearsal, I started with a gathering activity or musical game. We did a few minutes of stretching and warm-ups before singing through the Hymn-of-the-Month. We read the scripture verse, reviewed the Symbol of the Month, and read the opening prayer together.

Next, I reviewed something familiar—a hymn or anthem. Then, we spent some time looking at a new anthem: learning the melody and text and discussing its meaning. By this point, the group was usually ready for a change of pace: a hand jive or clapping activity, a silly song, a musical game, or some rhythm improvisation. Generally, there was time left for one more song or anthem, one more change of pace activity, and our closing prayer.

Related resource: Free Children’s Choir Rehearsal Template

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Singing with Purpose

Consider tying in a mission element. For the "Around the World" theme, Operation Christmas Child was a perfect choice. This gave the children an opportunity to participate in something greater than our church and give to those in need. Together, we packed and shipped over two dozen shoe boxes to children around the world that year.

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Celebrating

How will you celebrate at the end of the choir year? Consider an ice cream party or game night or a special outing or field trip of some kind. 

Our end-of-year celebration for the "Around the World" year was a pizza party. Each family brought a different colored pizza topping and everyone helped make pizzas that looked like flags from around the world. We played a few traditional games from different countries, did a little trivia, and celebrated a year of exciting travel and music-making.

Related post: Four Ways to Celebrate the End of the Choir Year

End-of-the-Year "Around the World" Party Invitation

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Learn how to lead and teach your children’s choir, creatively and confidently.

Join me in Directing a Church Children’s Choir 101,
a 4-week online training program geared specifically toward children’s choir directors in church settings.

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I hope these ideas are helpful as you start your own children's choir program! Have other ideas or suggestions for working with children's choirs? Please share them in the comments!