“I wanted to get kids to work more collaboratively. We say we’re a collaborative group, but the conductor is behind the piano teaching the choir parts rather than saying, ‘here's the part I want you to learn. Go learn it. Here are the expectations and come back and self-assess yourself.’ So, I designed performance tasks. I'll work on it as a group first, so they have some capacity for it. Then I'll have them break into sectionals and go reinforce it.”

William Gunn is the director of music at Plymouth Regional High School where he conducts the Concert Band, Jazz Ensemble, Concert Choir, Chamber Singers, and teaches a year long guitar elective. He is also the music director of the Pemigewasset Choral Society in Plymouth, NH, and a teaching lecturer in music education at Plymouth State University. Mr. Gunn received his bachelor of music in music education from Ithaca College and his masters of music in conducting from Colorado State University. Mr. Gunn has studied conducting with Wes Kenney, Dwight Bigler, Steve Peterson, and Eric Hammer. Mr. Gunn is the immediate past president of New Hampshire ACDA and serves as the Treble Choir Chair for the NHMEA All-State Festival.

To get in touch with Will, you can find him on Instagram @willdotg or email him at [email protected].

Choir Fam wants to hear from you! Check out the Minisode Intro Part 3 episode from February 16, 2024, to hear how to share your story with us.

Email [email protected] to contact our hosts.

Podcast music from Podcast.co
Photo in episode artwork by Trace Hudson