In my limited experience on the podium, I found that the most effective rehearsals were ones where students had the opportunity to take ownership of the music-making experience. Depending on the age group I worked with, the students had more opportunities to take charge in rehearsals in musical and non-musical ways. Musically, I always provided opportunities for students to model or lead during warm ups. This gave me time to assess individual students' musical growth, and gave them an opportunity to be a leader for their peers. Occasionally, in my middle school group, I would let pairs of students direct sectional rehearsals while I worked with groups of students who needed more structured guidance. Sometimes this resulted in insanity (my fault for not accurately gauging the atmosphere in the room), but most of the time, great music making happened. Outside of music making, I would assign jobs to three students in each section every trimester (attendance, handing out new materials, collecting old materials). This gave me extra time at the beginning of class to check in with students, ensure I had all my materials for the rehearsal (because lets face it, three minutes between classes might not be enough time!), and gauge the atmosphere in the room. Frequently the students selected for these tasks were ones who were uncomfortable leading musical activities. I made this choice because I wanted these students to feel like an integral part of my chorus community.
Rewarding Rehearsals:
A vast majority of my most rewarding rehearsals occurred when I let go of the reigns and just let my students needs lead the rehearsal. As a young teacher, it is challenging to not micro-manage every aspect of a rehearsal--I mean, you spent all that time on those lesson plans, right?! Sometimes it is necessary, however, to toss out the lesson plan and meet the students where they are at. This may mean an impromptu addition of choreography or finger snaps or percussion to a piece because they feel it is more like "the original". This may mean time spent talking about how the lyrics are reflective of something they are learning in history class, or a world event that has occurred recently. This may mean time spent addressing the "hard issues" that may not be tackled other places. When the students push me to dive into the music in unexpected ways, I find myself growing and understanding them more as people and musicians. I also find that they are more willing to invest in the rehearsal because they feel that they are being heard. In my mind, the most rewarding rehearsals are ones where the students leave feeling valued for who they are as individuals, not just the role they play in the ensemble.
