As a hypercritical choir director, I often find myself a pessimist in rehearsals, focusing on ways my choir can improve instead of focusing on everything that is already great! With the holidays just around the corner, I decided to take the opposite approach and tell you what I am thankful for: 1. People who practice 2. Music theory lovers 3. Men that sign up for choir and aren’t embarrassed… at all 4. Sopranos who can sight-sing 5. People who help set up and take down before/after rehearsal 6. Pencil bringers 7. Non-gum chewers 8. Singers who listen to others and not themselves 9. Singers who listen to me! 10. People who read my notes and mark their scores 11. And finally… people who understand my weird sense of humor while directing Thank you to all the singers out there helping to make the world a better place with your music. And thank you to all the women in my choir who put up with my crazy antics every rehearsal – you are heroes!
May 12, 2026 David Solar Join Us at the 2026 Chorus America Conference We’re excited to be heading to Minneapolis, Minnesota for the 2026 Chorus America Conference, taking place June 3–6, 2026. Backstage Blog
May 12, 2026 David Solar Join us at the 2026 League of American Orchestras Conference We’re excited to be heading to the 2026 League of American Orchestras National Conference in Baltimore, taking place June 1–3, with pre-conference sessions beginning May 31. Backstage Blog
May 4, 2026 Encore Tours How to Customize Your Boston Symphony Hall Experience There are certain stages that change how students think about performing, and Boston Symphony Hall is one of them. Backstage Blog