How to ask a singer to leave your choir

Very occasionally there comes a time when you will have to ask a singer to leave your choir.

photo by id-iom

What’s the best (and kindest) way to do this?

Novelty vs. familiarity – how to keep things fresh without alienating your singers

Familiarity breeds contempt. If you do the same thing over and over again it can become boring.

However, constantly introducing new things can be hard work and it can feel like you never arrive. How do we maintain a balance between these two extremes?

Don’t forget travel time when charging for an event

People often ask how much they should charge for leading a workshop or concert.

They usually focus on the professional fee for the contact hours, but forget any travel time involved.

How to avoid new choir members feeling left out in the breaks

I always thought I ran friendly, welcoming choirs (see How welcoming is your choir?). There was always someone around to buddy new members so they wouldn’t feel left out.

photo by theirhistory

But then one day, a new member said to me that standing around in the break felt like being the new kid in the playground at school.

The benefits and drawbacks of working in a circle when singing

I like to outsource elements of my teaching practice when leading singing days.

photo by Global Partnership for Education

I allow the singers to put chairs out (or not), and to decide how they want to stand. Often, it ends up being a circle. But is that the best way to sing as a group?