During the 2022-2023 school year, I was the music director of the a cappella group, the UConn Rolling Tones. I organized a forum with other music directors in the UConn A Cappella Association, to create a space to share information and tips with each other. I felt that since music directors have so much responsibility, but unlike other executive board members, receive no training, some sort of support would be useful. From this forum, I took specific strategies to implement in future Rolling Tones rehearsals, and I encouraged the other music directors to do the same with their groups. One big thing discussed at the forum was balancing the roles of leader and peer. Something I took away from other music directors was putting more collaboration into rehearsals.
I gave my peers a survey to gauge their attitudes with my music directing. Overall, they were already content, but there was room for improvement. I introduced using paper sheet music, because we had been using phones to read our music, which sometimes created distractions. When we started using paper music, everyone was more present, and with the ability to take notes on paper, edits and musicality were easier to remember. I made it a point to ask group members more questions about what they wanted to work on and incorporate in rehearsals. I asked for their input more often regarding musical decisions - I wanted to be more inclusive of the views of my group members - they are all creative and have strong opinions, and I wanted to take advantage of that rather than inhibit it. My efforts focused on creating a space where everyone felt heard and valued. After the semester, I sent out the same survey, and found that group attitudes improved!
