TEACHING

As an Artist-scholar…

… most of my courses are one-time events built around my current preoccupations. Each class is a creative laboratory where we digest critical readings, and then test those readings through creative prompts. I’ve taught at institutions including Stanford, Princeton, Wellesley, University of California, Berkeley, where my students have designed and implemented music compositions, short films, spoken-word pieces, and full-blown theatrical productions.

IMPROVISATION AS COMPOSITION

As a composer, I improvise to write — it’s a bit like panning for gold to get rich! In this workshop, we improvise together in large and small groups, while learning the basics of groove, confronting our inhibitions, and practicing listening & response skills. Students will emerge with an understanding of their unique skill set as improvisers, and their own rulebook as composers.

WRITING THROUGH LIMITATION

For many artists, limitation is the gateway to invention — give us rules and we discover trapdoors and surprise endings! In this 2-part workshop we learn to use limitation in the context of music composition, working within a given set of constraints and exploring new forms of self-expression. This workshop is for music majors and non-music majors alike; students are welcome to work in the medium of their choice.

GIVING VOICE TO OBJECTS

“Voice” can mean a range of things in muisc. This class spotlights the voices of things in nature (trees, wind, rocks) and in our workaday lives (tea kettles, phones, squeaky hinges) to explore their expressive and communicative power. We’ll explore the voice of the room, and make video selfies of clouds. Anthropomorphization of the environment is a key part of my own work as a composer. In this class, we'll use music as an vehicle to treat objects like human beings and discover how to tell their stories.

WOMEN IN MUSIC

Why is being a woman in music any different than being a man? Why in 2023 do men still outnumber women in the music industry? The goals of this class are twofold: 1. To explore the dynamics of so-called “feminine music” through a series of case studies of living women performers and composers to discover what drives them, and how they succeed. 2. To offer feedback to students in the class on their own goals and directions, and to help them uncover their own voices and possible career choices.