Time is our most valuable asset.
You can't buy it.
It's not infinite for us mortal humans.
We all waste it on the occasion, for sure...and sometimes we just need to stop and not think about how we are wasting it.
How we use our time and the time of others says a lot about our priorities.
For choir directors, it means respecting the time of the children and their parents during concerts.
Concert length is the topic...and how concert length impacts growth...or deters from it.
And my question is...Why do some choir directors feel the need to make concerts so long?
And why do some choir directors talk so much during the concert? And often, they say the same thing over and over when audience members mostly just want to see and hear their children sing.
It's not about us. It's about the children and their parents...most of whom are working full-time and are just trying to be there for their children.
If we set a standard of respect for time, the word spreads.
How can we economize the use of time when doing our concerts? How important is the performance experience? How long does a concert need to be? How long should it be?
That's what we are addressing here:
#1- Start precisely on time. People will soon learn that you do that, and they will get there on time...including time for parking and walking. Make sure you tell your students that is what you do. 7 PM is not 7:10 PM. "If your parents are always late, tell them the concert starts at 6:30"....They will giggle, and you will proceed with protecting their time and yours.
#2- To start on time requires excellent planning on your part. Dot the i's....cross the t's. Plan.
#3- How can you set up the situation using the circumstances you face (I had a gym) to minimize the amount of time used to move between the performances of your various choirs if you have more than one? Do you have to file on and off? Can you figure out a set up that doesn't require filing onto and off of the same risers? So much time is wasted with filing onto and off of a stage or set of risers. Can you break up the concerts?
#4- How can you keep the audience for the entire time? If the 6th graders sing first, and they don't have anything else to do, then a lot of the people who came to see 6th graders will leave after the sixth graders are done, and that always feels disappointing to the students who are still yet to sing. Should they leave? No...but some will if you don't set it up carefully. How about a joint number at the end?
#5- Talk less. I've been to so many concerts when a teacher pats themselves on the back at the 50 minute mark. They haven't talked the whole time...and then they do...and for too long. "We just got that done in under an hour, and we have one more song." Then, they talk for 10 minutes and say the same thing over and over. Then, they sing what was supposed to be in the final song followed by another final song. Less is more. Leave people wanted more.
#6- The impact of the performance experience for the children and for the community is huge. So, why can't we just do a short one? We can. We should when it is appropriate.
"People forget what you say. They forget what you do. They don't forget how you make them feel." Maya Angelou.
That quote drove me through my career.
When you decide to do a short performance because you understand the impact the performance will have on the children, your program and their parents, just tell them ahead of time.
Market it that way.
"This is a mini-concert".
Then, they will know. They will decide whether to come if they can.
But the students will have a "live" audience. They will hear the applause. They will feel the experience. And that is what changes everything.
Do we need to wait until December to do a concert? Should we?
No.
Do a small one in late September or early October. Market it that way to your students and parents so that you can give a performance experience to those children. Two or three songs. It doesn't matter. Just say to everyone that is what you are doing and give those students that experience...which will change them...and there outlook on chorus.
Do a bigger one in December...but definitely not over an hour.
Focus on adjudication in the spring, but look ahead and start teaching the music for your final concert so neither you or the kids get bored.
And then, don't make that spring event too long. Make it fun. Give people the feels doing the stuff you love because that will sustain you as you work to survive spring fever. Then, they can revel in that all summer and think about how they can't wait to come back to chorus next year.
Just a few more weeks of school. Hang in there.
