Today, I'm very thankful for my choir director at CSUEB. As I've mentioned before, my Freshman year there was anything but wonderful. However, due in part to the Music Department that Dr. James is a grand addition to, I can happily say that my sophomore year is going so much smoother.
Dr. James has always been welcoming and warm, but I'm especially thankful to him. Not only was I able to be a part of the Music Department, he placed me in the top choir at this school. It's been such a wonderful honor to not only work with so many talented musicians and great people, but to work under his direction.
The main reason for this point was a small comment he gave me today in class. Our choir was arranged in a circle around the piano to help with hearing each other, and I just happened to end up next to Dr. James. He's not intimidating, per say, so I wasn't afraid to be next to him, but he is brilliant and being one of the "newbies" and "youngins" in the ensemble, I was nervous as to whether or not I was meeting the standards that I've seen set around me. But I needed fear not. After we finished an especially hard section of Arvo Part's Magnificat in which my section maintains a steady pitch as the Sopranos hop around, Dr. James turned to me. He has this big, bubbly smile, patted me on the back and enthusiastically said "Good JOB, Colleen!".
His single sentence made my day. To know that I am pleasing him and adding to this choir is so fulfilling. But especially for him to acknowledge to me right there that I was doing well just added five points to my self-esteem for the day. So thank you, Dr. James, for being such a wonderful director to work under- both as a musician and as a student.
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