Metrics

“Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted.” – William Bruce Cameron (often attributed to Albert Einstein) Long ago, I served on a university strategic planning committee. One of our tasks was to assess the “quality” of the faculty. The problem was how to quantify quality. We decided … Continue reading Metrics →

“Assimilate This!”

“Assimilate This!” In the Star Trek movie, First Contact, Worf uttered this memorable line as he fired a phaser rifle at the Borg Collective, a species that forcibly merges humans with technology and assimilates nearly everyone it encounters. However, no one wants to be assimilated. No one wants to believe “resistance is futile.” Least of … Continue reading “Assimilate This!” →

Shop Class

I was required to take shop class in high school – wood shop, metal shop, and basic mechanical drawing. At the time, I wondered what use it would be to me, because even then there was talk about the coming “knowledge economy.” I had a guidance counsellor who told me that I wouldn’t need to … Continue reading Shop Class →

Higher, Louder, Faster

In high school I admired trumpet players like Cat Anderson, Roy Eldridge, Louis Armstrong, Dizzy Gillespie, Al Hirt, Doc Severinsen, Harry James, and of course, Maynard Ferguson. Many young trumpeters tried to play like these gentlemen, especially up high. In college, I managed to play a few of Maynard’s arrangements, sometimes even sounding a little … Continue reading Higher, Louder, Faster →

The Game

When I was in college, we joked about how we had to learn “what to kiss and when.” Some of my classmates facetiously said their goal in life was to “amass great wealth and power.” Generally, we rejected the notion that college was all about making money and “climbing the ladder.” That was then. But … Continue reading The Game →

Of Colleges and Kings

A family member used to say things like, “If he’s not guilty, why did they arrest him?” or “He’s guilty. What do they mean, ‘alleged’?” When I mentioned that the prosecution must provide evidence to prove the charges in court, their answer was, “Why bother? Everybody knows he did it.” Yet, accusations are not enough. … Continue reading Of Colleges and Kings →

The Unthinkable

Back in college, when we discussed the influences of “nature and nurture,” genetics and upbringing, inevitably the notion of a child “raised by wolves” came up. Fictional stories like Edgar Rice Burroughs’ Tarzan or Mowgli from Kipling’s The Jungle Book made us wonder what would happen if a child was left alone in the wild. … Continue reading The Unthinkable →

An Opus

I’ve always been troubled by the ending of the film, Mr. Holland’s Opus. (Warning: Spoilers ahead.) The story is about a would-be composer who became a high school band director. Mr. Holland’s time and energy were so consumed by his calling as a teacher that he put his dreams on hold. Early on, his school … Continue reading An Opus →

Opportunities

For two years (Fall 1975 through Spring 1977), I had the privilege of being a student of Jerry Coker at Duke University. He began his professional career as a saxophonist with the Woody Herman band in the mid-1950s. While he was a doctoral student at Indiana University he led the Indiana University Jazz Ensemble on … Continue reading Opportunities →

Tests

“Will this be on the test?” As you might imagine, in four decades of teaching I heard this question numerous times. Of course, I tested students and provided little quizzes to help prepare them for tests. In my recording techniques class, I administered one-on-one tests, so my students could show me they knew their way … Continue reading Tests →