This week, I read “Maintenance for the Conducting Gesture” by Britt Cooper of Walsh University in the March 2012 Choral Journal. I chose this article because I’ve noticed that sometimes when I am rehearsing a choir and focusing on listening to them and looking at the music in order to error detect, I sometimes can let my conducting gesture go out the window, which I’m sure can create bad habits.

Before addressing bad habits and how to correct them, Cooper discusses the importance of taking time, especially during the summer when you have more of it, to practice in front of a mirror and watch video of yourself conducting. It is very easy to continue to reinforce bad or distracting habits if you are unaware of them. The only way to become entirely aware of what you are doing is to watch yourself. You might not notice these things while you are conducting because you are doing too many other things at once to focus solely on your gesture.

One of the main things Cooper discusses is posture. Cooper addresses the all-too-common issue of bending over the podium to read the music. In order to fix bad posture, Cooper says to always conduct like a singer. This not only will help you be more comfortable as you conduct and give you a more commanding presence, but also provides a model for your singers of how to stand.

Another very important thing Cooper discusses is what you do with your hands. He addresses the tendency of the plane to rise as the piece goes on and keeping a consistent hand position throughout a piece. He addresses removing the unnecessary such as extras loops and turns and removing the backbeat subdivision that makes it very difficult for singers to sing legato. Cooper also mentions that it is very easy for the left hand to be misused and overused. He suggests that the left hand only be used for some cueing and dynamic changes, but everything else should be done with the right hand.

Lastly, Cooper addresses the importance of not mouthing the words to the choir because in trying to get their attention, you will be exaggerating the movements of your mouth, causing your singers to model this in their singing, as well. Finally, Cooper discusses the importance of knowing your music well enough that you do not have to look at it often. By spending too much time looking at the music, you create a communication disconnect between yourself and the choir. It also makes it harder for you to convey the emotion you want to so that students will pick up on it and bring it into the music.