How do you plan for and reveal that extra level of energy in the performance and connect meaningfully with the audience? What's required to balance stability vs. risk-taking onstage? How can we best use limited sound-check time to instil confidence while meeting everyone's needs and preserving energy?

What's the goal of final rehearsals? How do we ensure preparedness while keeping the music fresh? How do we need to adapt our rehearsals to build confidence in groups that perform rarely vs. those that perform often? What's the value of practicing performing, rather than just rehearsing? We tackle all this and more in this episode focussed on final rehearsals and sound checks.

Join us as we unpack perennial questions like: How do you know when to keep working at a passage or just move on? How do you balance your own interpretation vs. making space for the musicians' ideas? What's the role of non-verbal communication in effective rehearsals? What might we learn from taking more notice of what's going on in the room?

How can we set ourselves up to listen better in rehearsals? What can be planned in advance, and when do we need to adapt our plans? What tools can we use to make our rehearsals more efficient? What does good feedback for players look like, and how can we deliver it in a sensitive way? We tackle all these questions and more as we explore the nitty gritty of middle rehearsals.

It's the all-important first rehearsal! What is needed from both conductors and players in the first rehearsal? How does stress play a role? How do we navigate the dynamics of conducting professional versus educational orchestras? How can understanding attention help us set more reasonable expectations for ourselves, and the musicians?

How do you effectively prepare and study a score before rehearsals? How do you create your own vision for the piece? Should you listen to recordings? What about MIDIs? How do you prepare for a world premiere where no recording exists? We tackle all the curly questions to help you boost your score preparation.

From repertoire selection to rehearsal orders and balancing admin vs. artistic responsibilities, we break down what conductors need to consider in the lead up to a first rehearsal - whether you're working with educational, professional or community ensembles.

What do players need from conductors from before the first rehearsal up to the performance? Dive in with us in this sneak peek of our newest season, releasing every Tuesday (AEDT).

The how and why of thematic programming to engage your players and (new) audiences.

How do we determine artistic excellence? How do we select music that is appropriate for our ensembles, audiences and performances?