TUES. 11-3: When we put Choir Directors, including ourselves, in boxes & the need to build relationships with our Singers

#043. It's  "Greatest Director" Tuesday with a final conversation with Jenny Hutton and a shout out to the supremely awesome Dr. Donald Dumpson.  Dr. Dumpson comes up in one of Steve's "Confessions of a Choir Director."  Even when we're making real, significant, noble efforts to rid ourselves and our choral communities of internal, societal and/or institutional racism, bias can be present. The future Dr. Hutton and Steve talk about how we all tend to put choir directors in a box - including ourselves. They wrap up talking about choral leaders having time for singers, truly partnering with them to build true relationships, and honoring what they already bring of value to the music making from their own musical and life experiences independent of us. It's a realm that is of particular interest to Jenny as a doctoral candidate, educator and human. Choral leaders need to do themselves what they tell their singers is the most important thing of all...listen.  Venerated choir director Eph Ehly likes to say that we choir directors and our choir are alone in a very tiny, little corner of this planet called Earth. Therefore each of us are the greatest choir director and our choir is the greatest choir in the world. Through that lens, we are actually very BIG.  Jenny Hutton you are indeed the greatest choir director. You too Donald Dumpson. Visit the SHOW NOTES for links related to this episode. You can also visit coronachoir.org for more resources. There you can join the email list and  be automatically entered into a drawing to tour South Africa with Steve and make music with his South African friends - all expenses paid. If you're a choir leader and you need help solving a choir problem of any kind, visit 1 on 1 with Fish the Choir Guy, where 30 years experience meets your choral challenges. Finally, stay tuned for Steve's online mine course series, "South African Songs in 7!," as well as a course on how choral organizations can plan their own concert tours.  That's right. Your ensemble can have far superior and much less expensive tour experiences, with the profit going to your organization's bottom line instead of a cookie cutter tour company.