Courses
I LOVE teaching, even though full-time teaching hasn’t been my calling. I’ve taught at the university level as an adjunct professor, in the community, sparingly as a private teacher of counterpoint and composition, and constantly as a dad. (Now, whether my kids are learning anything is another story!)
The following courses are my way of sharing what I know and love with you. I hope you find them valuable!
1. Composing Choral Music with Andrew Maxfield
Writing choral music isn’t just for “composers with a capital C” ... if you sing in a choir at church, school, in the community, or even professionally, chances are you’ve wanted to write or arrange something for the choir. The difference between writing something that’s kind of clunky and something that totally pops rests on developing some skills and learning a good process.
In this course I’ll teach you my process using three pieces of mine as in-depth examples, moving from choosing a text to polishing and publishing the finished product. One piece was a Special Commendation winner in the King’s Singers New Music Prize, another was featured at the national NCCO conference (where I was a Composer Fellow), and the third was a private commission.
2. Practical Counterpoint
At its heart, counterpoint is to music what choreography is to dance—it's simply the choreography of sound. Unfortunately, many students (and professionals) get stuck in the impractical aspects of "species" nomenclature and stylistic attachments to Palestrina or Bach. In Practical Counterpoint, we focus on the profound, foundational issues of consonance and dissonance in the lifeblood of musical pulse. Through lectures and exercises, this course helps you build a toolbox that will serve you as a teacher, performer, interpreter, or composer/arranger.
COURSE LAUNCHES SOON
3. Arts Entrepreneurship
Every artist is a small (or not-so-small) business, and those who embrace this reality fare much better than those who don't. Ironically, artists who spend years honing their craft often don't invest the same time and discipline in the business side of their success. This course helps artists make sense of their unique business models and chart a wise course towards a successful arts enterprise.