Best Beth Philemon Podcasts (2024)

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81. What is Lifelong Musicianship? 30:03

1+ y ago30:03

30:03

How to Teach Lifelong Musicianship Course May 50% off SPECIAL Link Sign-Up to Learn More about the Course Choir Baton Podcast Producer: Maggie Hemedinger Music by: Scott Holmes Follow @ChoirBaton on Instagram | TikTok | YouTube | Facebook Visit ChoirBaton.com Follow @BethPhilemon on Instagram | TikTok | YouTube | Facebook | LinkedIn Visit BethPhile…

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80. It’s (still) the most stressful time of the year … 5 tips to simplify and (hopefully) de-stressify 20:17

2+ y ago20:17

20:17

This episode in 2019 is the most downloaded Choir Baton Podcast Episode ever. And I get it. This time of year is insane. But last year it wasn’t. Or if it was crazy for you, chances are it wasn’t because you were in a million different performances - you were probably dealing with the pandemic in your own way and with your own family stuff. Did you…

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79. #1 Hack for Concert Season Rehearsals 29:08

2+ y ago29:08

29:08

Yep, clickbait title. But real life truths thrown at you in this episode. I'll talk to you about what ONE THING you need to add to your rehearsals this concert season to increase connection and accelerate growth. Follow @ChoirBaton on Instagram | TikTok | YouTube | Facebook Visit ChoirBaton.com Follow @BethPhilemon on Instagram | TikTok | YouTube |…

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78. What if you did less? 32:58

3y ago32:58

32:58

Burnout is real. In this episode, I encourage you to do less. There is always more we can do as choral musicians and directors. But in order to be able to continue doing what we do, we need to cut down on overloading ourselves. If you’re watching this on YouTube, don’t forget to subscribe, like this video, and let us know what resonated with you fr…

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77. Choir and ______ : An Interview with Jenna Corley 54:53

3y ago54:53

54:53

Jenna and discuss the importance of having "choir and ____." As choir teachers, we can get caught up in our work and it become the only thing we do. However, we all have many gifts and abilities. We talk about some different ways to incorporate those in school or outside of the classroom. If you’re watching this on YouTube, don’t forget to subscrib…

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76. Growth IS the achievement: An Interview with Jessica Grant 1:02:31

3y ago1:02:31

1:02:31

Jessica Grant and I discuss common themes that I think most, if not all, music teachers can relate to. Amongst other topics we discuss the feeling of belonging and that you are enough and how we can communicate these things to ourselves as well as our students. We also discuss what it means to measure achievement by growth rather than specific goal…

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75. Back to Basics 1:21:23

3y ago1:21:23

1:21:23

Hey Choir Baton Podcast Listeners, Listen to the basic Choir Baton Choral Musicianship framework I use in the Choir Baton Teaching Membership and courses with friend and middle school choir teacher Benny Dominguez. Benny reached out to me on some questions regarding sequencing, pacing, and more - you’ll get to listen and learn right along with Benn…

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74. Lessons in Leadership: Reallocating your Baskets 1:08:34

3+ y ago1:08:34

1:08:34

I had three profound conversations about leadership over the past week and I couldn't not share them with the Choir Baton community. I think we are all familiar with the problem of taking on too many projects and staying busy, as teachers or as musicians. This episode is for you to let you know three important lessons that I learned this week and a…

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73. Why I Left Teaching Choir Full Time 43:19

3+ y ago43:19

43:19

In this episode, I discuss my reasons for leaving the classroom. It was not easy, but there were a lot of factors that impacted my decision. I know that especially during this time, you may be thinking about what you can change and control, and I am here to tell you - it is okay. Choir Baton Podcast Producer: Maggie Hemedinger Music by: Scott Holme…

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72. Giving Students Ownership: An Interview with Chantae Pittman 1:01:48

3+ y ago1:01:48

1:01:48

In this episode, Chantae and I discuss the many ways that students can have ownership of the music process in the choral classroom. This conversation led to topics such as sight reading, independence, and giving students leadership opportunities. Chantae D. Pittman is the Director of Choral Activities at Campbell High School in Smyrna, GA. Ms. Pitt…

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70. The Importance of Life outside Choir: An Interview with Becky Park on Poshmark 1:06:06

3+ y ago1:06:06

1:06:06

I discovered Becky on Instagram as a @beckyparkonposhmark and her work as a high school choir teacher and a clothes reseller. In this episode, we discuss having passions outside of choir and our dive into the true impact choir can have in a student's life that is not just musical. Learn more about Becky or connect with her through Instagram or YouT…

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69. The Teamwork in Choir: An Interview with Marshall Butler 54:39

3+ y ago54:39

54:39

Marshall Butler has impacted many student's lives over his years teaching. In this interview, we talk about the teamwork aspect of choir as well as many other important topics and memories from his years teaching. This interview is especially meaningful to me because Mr. Butler taught for 24 years at Sanderson and left shortly before I took the pos…

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68. Break the Cycle of Expectation: An Interview with Alex Alberti 58:56

3+ y ago58:56

58:56

Today I am joined by my former co-worker and dear friend, Mr. Alexander Alberti. We cover a variety of different areas in this podcast but one that stuck out to me in particular was this idea of "breaking the cycle of expectations" in teaching music the way it has always been taught. We have so many resources at our disposal, we should take advanta…

1
67. The Revamp 50:12

3+ y ago50:12

50:12

It is the first Choir Baton episode of 2021! In this podcast, I discuss the Revamp course I am offering to help you start the new year and the new semester prepared and ready to embrace changes and circumstances as they come. Join me through an episode of reflection as you reflect on your own year and the things you have learned from it. To enroll …

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66. The "Why" of Learning: Choir Baton Teaching Membership 1:13:50

3+ y ago1:13:50

1:13:50

Hello, Choir Baton Community. In this episode I address the reasons and process for creating the Choir Baton Teaching Membership. I talk about the gaps that I found as a teacher and how I have worked to fill them. Our students want to know the "why" of everything we teach, listen to find out ways to give that to them! Choir Baton Host: Beth Philemo…

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65. It's the Most Wonderfully Stressful Time of the Year...in the Most Stressful Year 46:30

3+ y ago46:30

46:30

This episode is a sequel episode to 26. It's the Most Wonderfully Stressful Time of the Year. In a year without concerts, gigs, and performances to plan, rehearse for, and execute, we do not have the same stressors as usual. However, we have had plenty of other struggles through the year and especially this season. You may have found yourself compa…

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64. The "Coulds" and Possibility for Change with Evan Tobias 1:06:54

3+ y ago1:06:54

1:06:54

In this conversation we talk about participatory culture and how it relates to adjustments and rethinking the music curriculum. Evan Tobias is Associate Professor of Music Learning and Teaching at Arizona State University where he heads the Consortium for Innovation and Transformation in Music Education citme.asu.edu. He is also Director of ArtsWor…

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63. No Judgement Zone with Marci and Hannah 1:08:30

3+ y ago1:08:30

1:08:30

Our fear of judgement can often hold us back from reaching our full potential. Listen as I discuss this as well as other topics of Music Service Learning, the importance of listening, and more in this conversation with Marci Major and Hannah Knauss, co-authors of the book Choral Connection. Dr. Marci Major serves as Chair and Associate Professor of…

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62. Turning Tradition Upside-down with Kaitlin Simonson 56:02

3+ y ago56:02

56:02

Listen to this episode to hear all of the ways Kaitlin Simonson has been creatively overcoming virtual learning as a barrier and engaging students in singing in new ways! Kaitlin Simonson teaches music at The Brearley School in Manhattan, and is the conductor of the Lux Mea Women’s Chorus. She relocated to New York four years ago after teaching cho…

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61. Value in the Community - Jonathan Palant on the Dallas Street Choir 1:08:04

3+ y ago1:08:04

1:08:04

After a life changing performance experience watching the Dallas Street Choir sing at national ACDA conference a couple years ago, I have the honor of interviewing Dr. Jonathan Palant, the conductor. Listen to hear his perspective on inequality in music and making a community space for singing. Jonathan Palant is Associate Professor and Director of…

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60. Our Art is an Emotional Art - Diane Covington 1:34:06

3+ y ago1:34:06

1:34:06

This interview is with my former high school teacher and one of my reasons for going into music education, listen for stories and powerful conversation. Diane Covington served as Choral Director at Leesville Road High School in Raleigh, North Carolina for 19 years. During her tenure there, the Leesville Road Choral Department grew in numbers from 3…

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59. You Are the CEO of Your Own Life: Interview with Chris Hitch 58:23

3+ y ago58:23

58:23

In this episode, my professor at North Carolina University in the MBA program shares his insight about changing professions, transferrable skills, and the value of teachers. Chris is an adjunct professor, strategy, leadership and innovation consultant, and the President and COO of a boutique management consulting firm. He has served in six general …

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58. Finding Your Why with Emmy Burch 53:30

3+ y ago53:30

53:30

Emmy and I discuss a wide range of topics but we keep returning to the "why." Knowing the "why" of anything you do is important, listen to this episode to find out more about how to find your purpose and self-reflect. Dr. Emily Williams Burch is the founder and artistic director of RISE Chorales, a community choir organization in Savannah, GA with …

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57. Getting Down to Business (and Choir) with Tori Cook 51:25

4y ago51:25

51:25

Join me in this episode with Tori Cook as we discuss the intersection of music and business, the future of community choirs, the innovation of the choral community during Covid-19, and much more! Tori Cook is the Director of Sales & Marketing at Chorus Connection. She sings with the Tanglewood Festival Chorus and is a board member of the Greater Bo…

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56. Tik Talks with Tommy Economou 52:01

4y ago52:01

52:01

I met Tommy Economou through a Tik Tok he made about the influence choir has had on his professional singing career with his band. Listen to find out more about how growing up in choir has made an impact on his current life and how Tik Tok has brought musicians together during these pandemic times. You can connect with Tommy and his band More Fatte…

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55. It is okay to ask for help 50:06

4y ago50:06

50:06

In this episode, I talk about how we as musicians and especially as music teachers often find it hard to ask for help. I discuss the stigma around seeking assistance both in our classrooms and personal life and I share some examples from my own life. When we ask for help, it allows us to focus our attention on things that need it. Choir Baton Host:…

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54. High School Choir to Collegiate Choir: a Conversation with Maggie and Jonathan 1:08:58

4y ago1:08:58

1:08:58

This interview was conducted with two former students of mine: Maggie Hemedinger and Jonathan Pelletier. Jonathan is a senior civil engineering student at North Carolina State University and continues to sing in his university's ensemble. Maggie is a senior music education and Hispanic Studies major at East Carolina University. In this episode, the…

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53. Addressing the fear of failure in choir with Troy Meeker 1:39:27

4y ago1:39:27

1:39:27

Long time friend and colleague, Troy Meeker, shares his experience with addressing the fear of failure in the choir classroom. How can we show students that it is okay to make mistakes? How can we show ourselves that it is okay to make mistakes? Taking the time to grapple with this makes us better musicians and better humans. We also discuss some o…

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52. What No One in Choir Wants To Talk About 50:30

4y ago50:30

50:30

You don't want to talk about this, but we must. As we come to grips with rehearsing through a variety of digital and socially-distanced means, we must determine what "concerts" will look like in the future. Research indicates that more people are watching concerts live/ live-streaming these days (shocker) but once concerts are "reinstated" - resear…

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51. Choir Baton Podcast Recap of 50 Episodes 44:05

4y ago44:05

44:05

New to the Choir Baton podcast? OG Choir Baton podcast listener? Somewhere in between? In this episode, I'm recapping the last 50 episodes to help you find which one you've forgotten about, where to start if you're not sure, or highlighting some of your favorite moments. Have a favorite episode? Let me know, I'd love to hear. A friendly reminder to…

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50. The #MorePeopleSinging... Even Online 57:44

4y ago57:44

57:44

I am incredibly particular in my approach to teaching music literacy because when I'm teaching music literacy, I'm teaching music. I'm teaching everything. I don't do voice placements, I do this. I don't start with teaching quarter notes, I do this. I don't avoid improvisation, I do this. And here's the thing with "this." You can do it online or in…

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49. It is time to unlearn choir 56:08

4y ago56:08

56:08

In a time where "normal" just is not a possibility, how do we "unlearn" what we have been learning and teaching for years and move forward with choir in a meaningful but safe way? Change can be scary, especially when we must make drastic changes in a short amount of time, not knowing whether it will be effective or work. In this episode, I walk thr…

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48. A Conversation with Darrick King on access, equity, and friendship 1:40:55

4y ago1:40:55

1:40:55

This is a long awaited interview with my dear friend and colleague, Darrick King. A native of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Darrick King began his tenure as Director of Choral Activities at Southeast Raleigh Magnet High School - University Connections: School of Design, Arts, & Engineering in July of 2016. Darrick earned a Bachelor of Science in M…

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47. All Choir is Choir 1:01:34

4y ago1:01:34

1:01:34

Rebecca Sabree is a choir teacher in Michigan with a love for choir music, but especially show choir. In some places, Show Choir gets a bad rep. (other places, not so) But the important take away from this episode is, "all choir is choir." And if there's ever been a time for the discussion of what "is" choir and what "isn't" choir today - it's now …

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46. 10 Things Every Choir Teacher Should Know... 57:22

4y ago57:22

57:22

and the Choir Community Needs to Hear Spoiler alert: 1. What makes you a choir teacher? (read some of your IG comments here) 2. What is choir truly about? 3. Focus on what you can control. 4. Your voice matters (shout out to my sister here and GSW singer, Ella) 5. American society will never respect teachers like they should. 6. It's okay to want t…

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45. Why you should prepare to teach/ conduct choir online this fall 53:07

4y ago53:07

53:07

Y'all. I'm throwing down some fire in this week's episode. I'm talking about why I believe online teaching is what you need to plan for this fall but cite examples of how I've used online teaching in my past classroom experiences and know it can be effective. Simultaneously, we need to realize we have to stop teaching people to love our choir more …

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44. Music and Business: an interview with Maria Ellis 1:25:24

4y ago1:25:24

1:25:24

Today I interview Maria Ellis, founder of Girl Conductor. Maria and I met online over a year ago via, of course, Instagram. If you’ve ever found yourself unsure of how to go after your dreams or in need of choral-inspiration. This episode is for you! Maria Ellis is a Music Educator, Choral Conductor, with over 20 years of choral music experience. C…

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43. Reflections from First Year Teachers: The End of the Trilogy 1:49:37

4y ago1:49:37

1:49:37

The Choir Baton podcast was started with a desire to record real conversations with people about choir. I can think of no more of real conversation than to trace the journey of a new choir teacher. Over the course of the past year I have talked with Nyi Nyi Myin and Lamar Davis as they started student teaching, finished student teaching, and now ha…

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42. #MorePeopleSinging beyond the classroom 1:03:30

4y ago1:03:30

1:03:30

In graduate school, I was an assistant conductor with the Master Chorale of Flagstaff. This experience was transformative for a multitude of reasons, two of which you’ll hear about here. Working with this choir each week I established relationships with community members who loved to sing. I always identified more with non-music majors than music m…

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41. Interview with Emily Campbell 58:31

4y ago58:31

58:31

The power of the Instagram choir community strikes again in this special interview with my dear friend, Emily Campbell. While I was struck with the fact there was another choir teacher posting about choir on Instagram (Yay! - this was a big deal 2 years ago) - I was also more struck by Emily’s openness in sharing her wedding pictures on her school …

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40. My Voice is Enough... Your Voice is Enough 58:01

4y ago58:01

58:01

Last year Choir Baton sold shirts with this phrase on it. Since then this phrase has continued to evolve in what it means to me. I’ve struggled to find my voice my entire life both metaphorically and musically. In this 40th episode of the Choir Baton podcast I share about how I’m leaning into owning the enough-ness of my voice both personally and m…

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39. The Wonderful Ms. Wonderly 1:19:59

4y ago1:19:59

1:19:59

Have you ever seen someone on Instagram and thought - THIS person - Who is she? Where did she come from? How did she get here? About a year ago I found her on Instagram and was captivated not just by the colorful, Pinterest perfect aesthetic of every aspect of her "grid" but found myself searching Targets for items she was repurposing for her class…

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38. Multi-Faceted Musicianship with Ben Parry 1:01:19

4y ago1:01:19

1:01:19

Anyone else get as excited as I do when you hear choral music in mainstream media? When Coldplay released their 2019 album Everyday Life, I was captivated by the song "When I Need a Friend." Fast forward several months and I was lucky enough to sit down with Ben Parry, conductor of that track sung by London Voices. Ben is a conductor, composer, arr…

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37. Struggling for Innovation Inspiration, Meet Dr. Sarah Gulish of @FFlatbooks 1:03:32

4y ago1:03:32

1:03:32

I'm excited to bring today's Choir Baton episode to you, because it is an example of how someone is innovating in music education, even before the pandemic hit. I was connected with Dr. Sara Gulish through Instagram, and you're about to listen to an Instagram Live we recorded about a month ago. Sarah’s story is an amazing example of how someone fou…

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36. Stop Looking for the Right Choral Repertoire.... 1:44:36

4y ago1:44:36

1:44:36

How many times of you struggled to find the exact piece of repertoire for a concert? How many times have you thought you found the perfect piece only to discover the tessitura that sits in all the wrong places? Or there's a four-part TB divisi in a random 2 pages of the piece. Or all of the many other pervading themes that are a part of the struggl…

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35. The Architect of Choral Repertoire: an interview with Dr. Dennis Shrock 1:01:57

4+ y ago1:01:57

1:01:57

In an unprecedented era of technology use in choral music, I was curious: how has technology influenced the history of choral music? I knew insight could be found from none other than the god of choral repertoire himself, Dr. Dennis Shrock. As a graduate student in choral conducting his Choral Repertoire book served as our bible for three semesters…

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34. Your Dress Rehearsal Opportunity 1:21:17

4+ y ago1:21:17

1:21:17

While you can't give your singers in the Spring of 2020 a final end of the year or semester concert as a culminating experience of the work they've done, I do believe you can provide a unique opportunity to reflect, showcase, and remember their year. Digital Portfolios, my friends. Yes, digital portfolios. Before you dismiss this idea - stay with m…

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33. More than the music: an interview with Dr. Ryan Holder 54:38

4+ y ago54:38

54:38

I remember sitting on my bed one day and crying (sobbing) to my best teaching friend, Valerie, that I had made the wrong decision to go to graduate school. That I couldn't do it. I was not good enough and was crazy for thinking I could. Simply put, my first year of graduate school for my masters in music was not easy. But my second year felt like a…

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32. The Music Doesn't Have to End: Live Recording from IG Live 1:03:22

4+ y ago1:03:22

1:03:22

My friend Andrew "Andy" Surrena began posting videos of him singing every day at 5pm from his soon-to-be inlaw's farmhouse in New York State amidst our nationwide quarantine. Andy's closing weekend as Romeo in Sarasota's Opera Romeo and Juliet had been cancelled and to encourage the singers to keep performing, the cast launched a 5'clock #SuddenlyO…

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31. "Because choir is greater than the sum of its parts" an interview with Joan Riddle Steinmann 49:27

4+ y ago49:27

49:27

On March 18, Joan made a blog post in response to the emotions she felt surrounding the choir community's various responses to having to "do choir" online amidst Covid-19. That post would quickly go viral and be shared time again by the choir community. Joan's words seemed to stir within our hearts what many of us could not find the words to expres…

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