Bondari

My apologies for not posting much these days. I’ve been busy working on a number of different tasks, and it’s difficult to keep a running commentary on them.

First of all, Tu Qui Consortem had its world premiere last Friday evening at Trinity Lutheran Church here in Lawrence, KS. The Men’s Chorus sang well, and I look forward to what they will do with it by the time KMEA rolls around in February.

Second of all, I have music theory comprehensive exams coming up on November 9, 2007. That’s less than two weeks away, and while I’m not particularly nervous, eight hours of theory exams is going to be rigorous!

Shortly after theory exams will be my comprehensive oral exams. What am I supposed to know in order to pass them? EVERYTHING!

In addition to prepping for these massive exams, I have that little thing called a dissertation to write. In short, I’m writing an oratorio for orchestra, chorus, and soloists. More on that later.

Finally, I’m officially on the job market! For several weeks now I’ve been monitoring mailing lists for college/university openings in Music Theory / Composition, and have sent out a few applications. With any luck, hopefully I will have a “real” job next year. I admit that it’s a strange feeling to have no idea where one will be next year.

Oh, and for the record, the more I study the works of Dmitri Shostakovich, the more I like him.

In what seemed like a blink of an eye, summer came and went. What happened during those few, short months?

The main event was that I studied for (and passed!) my doctoral comprehensive exams. Yay! I still have many tasks left to complete at KU, but this major hurdle is now crossed, and it is a great relief to be done with them. I have some great study guides for musicology now. If anyone would like a copy, please contact me.

Also, I helped my good friend Dan Forrest move into his new house in South Carolina. We definitely miss him already, but he should be back for a visit in October.

Other than that, I took a few road trips, learned a lot of Greek, and generally enjoyed myself (once comps were over).

Now that fall semester is here, I’m teaching Theory III, which is a significant and welcome change from teaching Theory I the past two years. I’ve also written my dissertation proposal, which will be an upcoming post.

On the horizon I have oral exams, a composition recital, and a couple of theory papers to write. Of course, the dissertation is looming as well.

If I’m really lucky, I’ll get it all done by the end of spring. I shudder when I think of how much work that really is. Oh well. How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.

Chomp !

I have been a Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) now for four years. My fifth and final year is starting this August, and by the end I will have taught a total of seven different university classes.

Over this time I have learnt a thing or two, and have had such far-ranging experiences as a death threat from a student (which is a felony offense, for the record) to having a student run away from home at the end of a semester (bizarre, but everything turned out ok).

Here are a few pieces of advice for new GTAs. Of course, I cannot comment specifically on particular courses and areas of study, but in general:

• Know Your Subject Area.

Easier said than done, I know. If you have never taught a class before, you will quickly realize that there is a HUGE difference between sitting in a desk taking notes and generating material while standing in front of a class. While you do not have to be the world’s foremost expert on a given topic, you simply must prepare more material than you plan to teach that day.

In other words, don’t wing it, especially not the first time teaching a particular course. I can now easily tell whether or not a professor has prepared a lecture or is flying by the seat of his/her pants, which happens more often than you might think. Don’t get me wrong: there is always an element of improvisation in teaching, but you do not want the bulk of your lecture to be improvised. (more…)