Professor Carol
Ordinarily certain moments stand out in a busy conference: a warm conversation, a quick reunion with a student, or funny story shared by a colleague. But in this year’s Great Homeschool Convention in Cincinnati, every moment seemed to stand out! This conference rivals anything in … Read more
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had parents tell me they don’t know how to teach Fine Arts. Yes, teaching any subject can be intimidating. But many people never received any meaningful exposure to the Fine Arts in their own education. I hear the same … Read more
A young lady came up to me during last week’s Great Homeschool Convention in Fort Worth, Texas. A high-schooler, she is taking our Imperial Russia course and had recently passed the milestone unit on Pushkin. Aglow, she told me how excited she was to have … Read more
On a clear day Rise and look around you, Well it was indeed a clear, sunny day. I had just delivered a mid-afternoon talk on the history of Calypso to an audience of fellow-travelers as we steamed across the Caribbean Sea towards Philipsburg, St. Maarten. … Read more
Those of you in the early stages of discovering classical music may become frustrated when much of what you hear is so unfamiliar. You may be tempted to retreat back into familiar territory and decide you don’t “really like” these kinds of pieces. Or, depending … Read more
The first Sunday in Advent Lighting the first purple candle of the Advent wreath marks the beginning of the season, whether within a church service or in a home celebration. Use of an Advent wreath to signify the four Sundays preceding Christmas has been recorded since … Read more
Offenbach, Barcarole from The Tales of Hoffmann Operas are full of hit tunes—at least, that’s the hope of the creators, directors, and financial backers. If you consider how people today enjoy the songs from Phantom of the Opera, Les Misérables, and musicals like Guys and Dolls, … Read more
My husband always tells me, “Write about whatever’s on your mind.” Okay, I’ll follow his advice for this week’s post. This short article has stayed on my mind for several days, although not necessarily for a happy reason. The subject is a good one. A … Read more
Sometimes it’s the glances that remain with us. Glances that barely hold the eye, but are enough to tell the tale. I’ve been recalling the recent three weeks of intense travel during my last stint as a Smithsonian speaker. I confess that this voyage overwhelmed … Read more
On Tuesday I gave my first lecture ever on Indian music. Indian, as in the continent of India, not as in Native Americans. I was far out of my comfort zone and put plenty of work into preparing it, as one usually does when panic … Read more