DANIEL MOORE MUSIC

An expert is somebody who's from out of town, and a prophet is never appreciated in his own village. Sometimes the students just need to hear everything you've been telling them from another source. They need a "second opinion". I've known directors (some of them very skilled) who were petrified of letting anyone else in front of their groups, for fear that a clinician might say something that contradicts their established norms. But I've found that the vast majority of the time, clinicians merely confirm the direction of their conductor, perhaps with a new way of looking at the problem. Any contradiction can be easily dealt with through proper preparation and meaningful discussion after the clinician has gone home. I've lost count of the number of great clinicians I've had in front of my groups, whether in a festival situation or right in my own band room. The ones I have back time and time again (Don Owens, James, Lambrecht, James Keene, etc.) are the ones I know will affirm what I've already been doing, as well as present ideas and insights I never would have thought of on my own.

 

As a band director with a lot of miles behind me, I've built up a pretty impressive "bag o' tricks", and it is one of the true joys in teaching for me to go out and share that knowledge with other music educators. I think its a lot like being a grandparent: I get to go and play with the kids for a few hours, share some fun and wisdom, but at the end of the day I get to go home. Now that I'm semi-retired from public school teaching, I have plenty of time to travel about clinicking during the school day, but I also have select evenings and weekends free, and would welcome the opportunity to come help out, whether as a conductor or just another set of ears. Having spent over thirty years in the trenches, I understand budget constraints, and have been known to provide clinics for no more than a friendly meal (though I am of course happy to accept any honorarium you see fit to bestow).

 

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