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The Choir as Garden
A Dynamic, Singer-Centered
The Choir as Garden: A Dynamic, Singer-Centered Approach to Choral Leadership

Approach to Choral Leadership

space, and I examined how I might facilitate a more ment. Philosopher Martin Buber framed educators as
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free and welcoming experience for singers. Although either gardeners or sculptors. Those who approach
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some of the singers’ concepts of the choir predated my teaching as gardeners help learning unfold naturally;
leadership, I determined to remake any habits that per- in contrast, Buber wrote, those who approach teach- Jennif er Hutton
petuated the Puzzle Model. A new model was needed ing as sculptors seek to shape students into premade,
to move toward a singer-centered approach that clar- fixed forms. Psychologist Alison Gopnik applied a sim-
ified the values of the choir, held the conductor ac- ilar framework to parenting. Gopnik urged parents to
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countable for practices aligning with those values, and serve as gardeners who nurture children’s potential for
communicated with singers about the ideas that guided growth rather than as carpenters who shape children
our choral community. into their fixed vision of “the ideal” adult.
The Garden Model frames the conductor’s role as a Buber’s and Gopnik’s concepts of the exacting
facilitator of a welcoming environment. Just as horticul- sculptor and carpenter find their counterparts in tradi-
turalists cultivate a hospitable environment for plants, tional, formal conceptions of the choral leader. In for- Today’s choral educators often articulate goals members can lose positive rewards of group sing-
choral leaders can create a welcoming space with con- mal Western musical training, the conductor engages in that prioritize positive relational experiences for ing that leaders ostensibly intend to foster.
ditions that encourage growth. The Garden Model solitary score study to craft an ideal vision of a musical singers. Many educators strive to foster positive This article presents a metaphor of the choir as
also asserts that, like plants, individual singers are dif- product, which they then exhort singers to recreate pre- experiences of belonging, relationship-building, a garden to help educators align their practices
ferent, and the collective environment benefits from cisely. This model permeates much of choral ensem- and community. Such goals reflect a relational, with the relational, singer-centered values they
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expressions of individuality. In biological ecosystems, ble music making. In the ensemble I worked with, sing- person-centered approach that values singers’ often hold. The Garden Model frames teach-
diversity is a strength. Similarly, in choral environments ers had internalized this system as the Puzzle Model. experiences as much as (or more than) the music er-conductors as cultivators of conditions that
that value and welcome individuals’ varied character- They confined their voices in what they perceived as a they present. Despite choral leaders’ intentions, allow singers to develop and grow. When indi-
istics, the collective ensemble is primed to thrive. The specific, predetermined approach to ensemble singing. singers’ experiences do not always reflect the viduals’ varied growth is fostered, singers can be
next section will contextualize the Puzzle and Garden Comparing the choral educator to a gardener offers a relational, person-centered values that leaders emboldened to function as an interdependent
Models by relating them to scholarly discourses about different approach, as the conductor leads by recogniz- espouse. Researchers have identified barriers to ecosystem that is more than the sum of its parts.
education, choral pedagogy, and tensions in the role of ing and valuing singers’ musical contributions and by singers’ positive experiences including require- The first part of the article situates the model
the conductor. creating ample, flexible space for all individuals to grow. ments that singers mold themselves to a con- in the context of my own experience as a leader
ductor’s musical vision and the use of repetitive working with a new group.
Tensions in the Conductor Role rehearsal techniques focused on technical perfec-
Scholars have identified elements of choral leader- tion. When teacher-conductors prioritize musical
“The Garden Model also asserts that, like ship that reflect both the Puzzle Model and the Garden

plants, individual singers are different, Model. Researcher Patrick Freer asserted that both per- results more than singers’ experiences, ensemble
and the collective environment benefits formance and pedagogy are part of an optimal music
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from expressions of individuality.” education. Yet, Freer argued, formal musical training
can encourage conductors to spend more energy on
creating a pristine musical performance than on craft-
ing pedagogy that prioritizes singers’ needs.
Other scholars have described tensions between
Context for the Garden Model choral leaders’ choices to prioritize product, process, or
people. Within this framework, conductors emphasize
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The Gardener in Philosophy, Education, and Psychology to varying degrees the final musical product, the process
Many philosophers, educators, and psychologists of learning and rehearsing, or the experiences of the
have used the metaphor of a gardener to represent people in the choral ensemble. These distinctions reflect
person-centered approaches. Philosophers Plato and elements of the Puzzle Model’s emphasis on a pre-
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Jean-Jacques Rousseau compared teachers to garden- formed, static musical product and the Garden Model’s
ers, suggesting that educators can facilitate students’ process-based, person-centered emphasis on singers’ de-
growth by cultivating a well-tended learning environ- velopment and growth.

CHORAL JOURNAL August 2025 Volume 66 Number 1 25